MIAS: Love it or hate it

ACOUPLE of weeks ago, the 2024 Manila International Auto Show, or MIAS 2024 as we would call it, got one of the biggest crowds for the premiere auto show that has been running for almost 20 years. Alvin Uy, who usually represents Worldbex to us motoring journalists, said they had over 162,000 visitors for the four-day trade event, surpassing by more than 20 percent the highest attendance pre-pandemic.

For the first time, MIAS was held in two separate venues — the World Trade Center on Buendia Avenue and the SMX on the SM grounds at Macapagal Avenue — which were some 5 kilometers away from each other.

Surprisingly enough, people did not mind shuttling back and forth, braving the record-breaking Manila summer heat just to see the displays of new cars expected to come out in the market for the next 12 months until the next MIAS comes next year.

Truth be told, MIAS is a much bigger and more anticipated event than the automotive trade show of the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers in the Philippines Inc. (Campi), called the Philippine International Motor Show or PIMS, which, for this year, is planned to be held in October.

While PIMS is usually exclusive to the members of Campi, some 15 brands, mostly Japanese and American with a couple of Europeans, MIAS is open to all, Campi members or otherwise.

There is an ongoing talk in the grapevine that Campi urged its members not to join MIAS, which is why you did see Toyota or Honda, and now even Ford, at the summer car show. And those whose brands are part of the Philippine auto manufacturers’ group had token displays.

That is not to say a few big Japanese car brands do not spend a lot for MIAS and they may even spend as much for a second car show this year at PIMS. Nissan, Mitsubishi and Suzuki were at MIAS and are expected to be at PIMS later this year too.

But whatever, marketing is marketing, and motor shows are always good for the brand.

Now, while MIAS was a tremendous success, and I loved how the booths were created and all the hoopla, I still have to say it was a pretty harsh environment for us motoring media who were covering the event.

International motor shows would usually dedicate the opening day for the media, if only to allow the publications, broadcast units, and websites enough time, room, space and exclusivity to shoot the cars, interview the auto executives and personalities, and generally roam the vicinity without the hassles of struggling against a crowd of car enthusiasts looking to photograph the cars and girls or take selfies.

And while I understand that the cost of one revenue-free day to give to the media may be a bit high for the organizer, I ask this question: Is not the amount of publicity the media generates for the event — pre, during, and post — enough to at least give us some room to maneuver so we can take better photos and write better stories?

Not a few of my colleagues have ranted on social media about how hard it was to scuffle with the public during the launch program of every car brand, preventing us from taking proper pictures of the cars or having a decent interview with the executives.

It will either be the production units of the car companies who get in the way of the photos and videos of the media heroically trying to get the best possible photo for their publication, or the viewing public pushing us away from our spot so they can get their gimbals and selfie sticks in position for their personal photos.

One reporter friend of mine was even so frustrated he could not get a proper video interview with a car executive because they could not get the background of the car correctly with people posing right behind them. Otherwise, the interviewee would be pushed out of frame.

And then there was the music from the booths. Blaring sounds were playing while one car brand was in the middle of a presentation, muddling and muffling what the hosts and speakers were saying, making us unable to understand what they were saying.

As for the two venues, it was a treat to have regular shuttles to serve the visitors. It just came to a point where we, covering the event, were overwhelmed by the number of customers trying to get into the shuttle. The situation forced us to drive to the other site or just stay.

Now, I am not telling these stories or accounts just to gripe. There will be future automotive trade shows, and MIAS will continue its run as it has become synonymous as the annual car gathering in the Philippines. Even the Russ Swift stunt show is a highly expected treat that I think Worldbex will let go anytime soon.

I am listing all of these to create a guidepost for the organizers of MIAS for future events. I am also writing these down here to express our request that we, who toil to bring the highlights of the event to a bigger public that is not able to attend, be given a little breathing space to do our jobs with as little hassle as we can possibly get.

As for PIMS that will be held later this year, maybe if they read this, Campi can craft a better atmosphere or situation for us who cover their event, so our work will have a little less stress.