Convention to benefit dealers

Dealers heading across the ditch this month will be able to access data, research and practical business ideas from a number of industry figures over the course of two days.

Organisers of the 2026 Australian Automotive Dealer Association (AADA) Convention and Expo are encouraging people from New Zealand businesses to attend the event, which is being held in Sydney on July 29 and 30.

There will be the chance to meet with other dealers, suppliers and original equipment manufacturers, plus a range of presentations and workshops are being delivered by companies operating in New Zealand and Australia.

New Zealand dealers attending AADA 2026 at the International Convention Centre Sydney are automatically eligible for the same registration prices as AADA dealer members.

Nicholas Johnson, AdTorque Edge’s chief revenue officer, will be among the presenters at the convention and is running a workshop on the second day about “maximising dealer marketing return on investment in a changing media landscape”.

“I’ll be talking through what a modern dealer marketing ecosystem looks like in that context: better data, better media quality, smarter use of AI for personalised outreach, and brand all working together as a flywheel rather than a string of disconnected campaigns,” he told Autofile Online.

He notes AADA 2026 has plenty of relevance for Kiwi delegates because the same issues are at play on both sides of the Tasman, but often with less room for error in New Zealand because the market is smaller.

“The gap between top performing dealers and everyone else tends to come down to the same handful of levers whether you’re in Auckland, Christchurch, Sydney or Adelaide,” adds Johnson, pictured below.

“For dealers, the value [of AADA 2026] is speed and clarity: access to data, research and practical frameworks from people working across hundreds of dealerships, condensed into two days instead of months of trial and error.

“For me as a presenter, the value is the feedback loop. Standing in front of a room full of dealer principals and GMs forces you to pressure test ideas quickly – you find out what lands, what gets challenged, and where dealers are genuinely feeling the pressure. It keeps the work honest and grounded in reality, not just in slide decks.”

Tackling common issues

AADA says its annual event is a practical opportunity for New Zealanders to access a major international dealer convention in a nearby and highly comparable market.

“Across both countries, dealers are navigating changing consumer expectations, margin pressure, new brands, electrification, used vehicle dynamics, fixed operations performance, marketing return on investment, AI, data, cyber security and evolving regulatory demands,” it adds.

In Australia, AADA’s 2026 Dealernomics Automotive Statistics show the franchised dealer network employs 64,045 people, supports 7,508 apprentices, generates AU$91.3 billion (about NZ$109b) in turnover and contributes AU$21.5 billion to the economy. The Australian new-vehicle market recorded 1,241,037 sales in 2025, while used vehicle sales reached 2,316,208.

New Zealand’s automotive sector is also a major employer and business network. MITO industry data shows 68,304 people were employed in the sector in 2025 across 15,020 businesses. New Zealand’s new-vehicle market recorded 137,900 total industry sales in 2025, up 7.1 per cent on 2024.

“That makes AADA 2026 a practical opportunity for New Zealand dealers to benchmark against a larger neighbouring market, hear from Australian and international speakers, meet suppliers, and explore how other dealer businesses are responding to similar commercial pressures,” says the association.

This year’s main stage programme will examine several issues including how dealers can thrive in a high-tech, low-margin environment shaped by changing buyer behaviour, new brands, electrification, pricing pressure and more informed consumers.

A special panel will discuss why used vehicles have become an important opportunity in dealership retail, while one of the many presentations will focus on fixed operations and customer retention.

Other sessions will cover global challenges, EV growth, Chinese brands, consumer choice and what dealers can learn from overseas markets.

To read more about AADA 2026, check out the July issue of Autofile.

For more details about the event, its programme and to register, visit aadaconvention.com.au.