# The official Waxstock feedback and thoughts thread



## 182_Blue

As title, here is the place to post how you think it went and what would make it an even better event the next time :thumb:. , or just post some of your favourite pictures from the day.


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## Derekh929

Would have loved to attend , but logistics for Scottish members not good, but well done on the event the feedback seem's excellent , good transport link Manchester , Birmingham , but aware more demand and higher cost's but as the show grows would be good.


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## Magic Detail

Perhaps a more centralised location, such as the NEC, for next time? Appreciate costs may be higher for this type of venue. Event City in Manchester is easily accessible from all over the UK and would come in at a reasonable price I would have thought... 

Aside from that, I didn't attend this years show (due to workload) but it would appear to have been a great success from seeing the images and reading through peoples feedback who actually attended


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## badman gee

good day out,

looking forward to next year.

some nice cars on display inside and outside.

with regard to the shine competition it would be better to have a few categories:

daily drive cars and weekend cars (used regularly not just stored in a garage)

show cars that are not driven or used.

some of the cars are obviously not driven and have had thousands spent on them!

not enough samples on offer and in some cases not enough offers.

it is also difficult for many people just starting up in detailing, as there are so many products on display!

didn't think much of the mc for the day, and not enough announcements on what was going on. 

mark

ps best car there: aventador by country mile no competition imho!


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## Leemack

For me, and i'm being honest.

It would be ace to have both sides of the hall open for maybe loads of cars and exhibitors cars. But then this may be a natural progression anyway.

I was totally happy with it. All the staff were friendly and made us very welcome. 

I am ashamed to say i never got to come to the DW stand :wall: I FAIL.


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## Matt.

I really enjoyed the day overall.

I arrived at 8.30am. 9am prompt the gate opened. 

I walked into the atrium, and that is where I spent my next 2 hours, looking at the 16 cars and chatting to folk. I wasn't bothered about rushing into the main hall to see the traders. They will still be there later. 

When I finally finished looking at the cars, I spotted the Lamborghini Aventador. I spent another 15 mins looking and taking photos. 

I then decided to walk around the main hall. Looking at all the stands, watching the Speed Detailer Comp, Demos form various traders. Flex, 3M, Dr Leather etc. I didn't buy anything this time round, I just wanted to wander around checking out what was on offer, speak to people and take it all in. 

After a walk outside to the Wet Demo area, where I was impressed by the Autosmart Tornador (If you have a compressor, you need one of these) it was onto to see Bouncer (Jay) making Satsuma Rock! Great guy. 

Then it was time to buy buy a few things I needed. I did spot price lists on some stands, which did show discount for the show, but ALL of them should of had a price list. I liked the way Autobrite Direct had each item priced. Clearly marked. Can't believe I forgot to go back and get the Foam Lance offer :wall: 

Food was expensive, but then it's a show. What do you expect. 

I could go on....

Overall, it was a good day, where you can meet, talk and have a bit of banter with like minded people. 

Thanks Waxstock


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## cortinajim

Had a great time ,enjoyed it apart from the drive down in the rain
Got to know folks from on here and put faces to names
Never heard any body say any thing bad about my Cortina and did not let the showdown 16 cars down or that is maybe just my take on it
Thought it was a very good show and was well pleased to come third in the show down ,[maybe a prize for third would help as the out side show and shine had one] ,I am sure some thing could be taken from the 1st and 2nd prize fund to give a third prize 
Just my take on the day


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## alxg

From someone who attends too many trade shows every year, therefore knowing what works well in this kind of event, I would say if there was a central demo/tutorial area which is running with various How to/Tips/Q&A type slots then that would be a big help to those of us who want to increase their knowledge. Special offers always go down well (I know some did this already) and help to give people a gentle nudge into buying :thumb:
Location wise, it's never going to be easy for everyone so as long as location isn't something that ends up costing too much for all to attend then you have to go with what is out there.
Other than that, if it's a DW event then let's try to bring the spirit that makes the forum such a success into another event; get yourself into the crowd and shake hands with the member you've been offering advice to - or even arguing with :lol: - we are all different bar one thing......we frequent this forum regularly, and with the numbers on here that should make it a success every time.


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## Sonia

Both me and my boyfriend attended the show and I'm glad to report we loved it <3


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## Auto Detox

My feedback (copied from the other thread),

First Marc cheers for the kind words on the Defender. I wanted to come & have a chat with you but everytime I saw you you were either surrounded by people or hawk eyeing a car in the atrium so apologies dude ! 

I had a great time this weekend, I knew my car choice would not to be to everyone's taste I chose to show it as it is a pain in the butt, its not a perfect panelled Audi, Porsche etc its big, ugly & not the best quality materials (sorry land rover but its true ha ha) did everone take a photo, no. Did some people, yes. I had a good long chat with a lot of guys one even asked to look under the bonnet, no problem I opened her up for him. 

I met some great people & had some great laughs, Lee from Concourse car care wondered past on sat afternoon while I was taking some pics & stopped for a good chat, cheers Lee 

I met Scrim & PJB real nice members thanks for coming to say hello guys 

I met all the Auto Finesse team on Sunday morning over coffee & b'fast in their stall fantastic people & were so friendly & made me laugh my ass off ooopps sorry 

Caught up with Gordon (defined details) & The wee mad scientist Dave (congrats on the wedding Mr !) gordon even bought me a cuppa coffee ! Cheers mate we chatted & had a good laugh too

Met up with Tim from Envy on the Dr leather stand & met Mr & Mrs leather really nice people & need to apoligise to Garreth from Detail my ride as I thought he was someone else 

Finally met Johnny, also bumped into Nick with this Gti & all the other cars in the showdown where I spent far too much time talking to entrants, great to see the black beetle & chat with the owners

I did spend more time wondering around than by my car ! & there was also a lot of people I didnt get to meet to those I am sorry,next year ! As I WILL be there 

DW thanks for putting on a great show & for the first year an excellent turn out it will only get better

oh one last shout, the event staff were great every time I asked a question no matter what time of the morning or evening they helped right away & even made really nice comments on the Defender too, cheers guys ! 

Man am I tired today...

Take it east guys
Baz 


p.s Had a good chat with Miglior, a real nice guy too & Steve an old client who is nice too see 
pp.s probably loads more I forgot ! sorry guys


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## plod87

Really enjoyed it, and got some good bargins:thumb:
As a newbie found it helpful, with everyone happy to offer advise, so thanks guys


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## Sonia

I would like to say that the only thing we both think could of been done better was the MC he just kept going on and on about god knows because the microphone we think wasn't working right. We couldn't understand a word of what he was talking about but he seemed a nice guy!


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## Paintshield

Copied from the other thread
Great show which I missed due to illness, my guys had a great time though and were run off their feet all day, at last count they did the self healing test just under 90 times.

They neglected to tell me they took a wire brush to the 458 a few times <which was just as well as I was ill enough as it happened>.

Top marks to all concerned and count us in for the next one.


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## alxg

Derekh929 said:


> Was this directed at me if so you may wish to re read my comment, surely more people attending would be good for all, and another comment below me you may wish to remind them as well, can't anyone give feed back :thumb:





-R- said:


> Its not you hes referring to, its from another thread that we have closed :thumb:, your feedback is exactly what Waxstock needs


^^ What -R- says ^^, I wasn't there either mate, and still gave my thoughts - just as you and hopefully lots of others will :thumb:


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## ianFRST

well i thought it was brilliant.

met LOTS and lots of people for chats, too many to name  trade stands were very good. could have been more show and shine, but thats about my only bad thing to say

oh and just an LOL at the other thread, i mean, FFS! haha

p.p.s i came 6th over all in the top 16  :lol:


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## Leemack

You should have come over and said hello Ian. That FRS looked ace


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## Shiny

Mine, copied from the other thread -

_Not long back myself, ending up chatting (as usual) in the car park so didn't leave until nearly 7pm and then there was an accident on the M40 near Oxford which didn't help.

As a "trader", I went to he show with an open mind. When you are sat amongst a detailing sweet shop of goodies and products, insurance isn't really that glamorous and I thought I'd feel a bit like the credit card stand at motor/bike shows that everyone drops their head and runs past to avoid.

I was wrong though. I met some customers and contacts, some of which I've spoken to for years now, and it was great to finally put faces to names. So heartfelt thank you goes out to those.

I was also surprisingly busy with enquiries and I have plenty to do when I get back to the office on Tuesday. So another big thanks to all those who stopped for a chat.

It was nearly 4pm before it quitened down and I was able to have little wander as I was on my own today. Add in some more chatting and I only got a brief look at the actual show.

It was well organised and in my opinion a great show. A chance for people to chat to the great range of traders and buy as many different brands as they fancy all from one place.

This was my first exhibition, I felt welcome and the show went well. So thanks to all those involved.

Oh an my car was dirty. It was spotless Wednesday, but 300+ miles yesterday on wet roads, getting home at gone 10pm and a 5am start this morning, meant no time for detailing. 
_

As mentioned, sadly I didn't get to see much of the show as I was on my todd. Peterborough is a bit of a pain from Swindon, but the venue was great and was so much easier to navigate than the venues in the big cities. I'd be more than happy to travel there again next year. Also, there is much room for expansion and I agree with Lee that the second hall would be great as a second show case area.

Don't forget, this was the first uk show of its kind in a pretty niche market. It could have been a total flop. But it wasn't. It was busy and extremely well run. Here's hoping it continues each year and it can only get bigger and better.

It was great to be a part of it, and my patio set is now safely back in the garden.


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## littlejack

Firstly i would like to say what a great weekend me and the wife had drove up on saturday and stayed at the Marriot which was excellent.. Had a great time at the arena meeting some of the people from this forum. A couple of suggestions i would like give are a more central location costs permitting and an area for interior detailing maybe even an area for beginners to come and see how its done and ask stupid questions.. After seeing a number of small children walking around the arena maybe even a bouncey castle and ice cream van depending on which direction you want to take the show.. These are just a couple of suggestions for the future. I know this will be a steep learning curve for everyone involved. WELL DONE!!! see you all next year i hope...

Regards
Steve


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## GT666

This was the jist of my constructive criticism/feedback from the other thread ;

I'm not a forum regular...so here's my 

My suggestions for future events would be this;

1. No need for a master of ceremonies or a singer...have a central stage for well-presented demos, followed by Q&A

2. More to see outwith the trade stands. Car clubs, other competitions. You had one charity stall. Why not have more with tombola, lucky dips etc for the kids and the people who've been dragged along and aren't into cars ?

3. Divide the show& shine into 3 categories - beginner, amateur-enthusiast and pro. Then folk might not feel too intimidated to enter 

4. Have some bikes and bike-related products.

5. Have a stall that has information about different training days/relevant courses

A lot of work obviously went into the event so a big congrats to all those involved. It was a good starting point from which to grow the event (I think listening to feedback and acting on it will be key to getting people back next year)


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## Waxamomo

Copied over from the other thread:

Well i'm still recovering from it....... I'm bloody knackered!! 

What an absolutely fantastic day (well 2 for us if you include set up).

Set up day I was kind of thinking I may have overdone it with 3 of us on the stand, I was thinking we may have more staff than customers How wrong was I!! I can't really put into words how much of a great show it was, from both a traders point of view and I did actually take 30 seconds to have a quick walk around the show and was really impressed.

It was great to put names to faces, although we were so busy most conversations were 30 seconds long before we had another wave of customers to look after I know a few people came to say hello and I tried to hold a conversation while serving about 3 other people at the same time 

A huge thanks goes out to anyone who came for a chat and/or bought from us, it was much appreciated and hopefully everyone went away happy Although I did have a few unhappy customers when we sold out of Wheel Woolies 

I haven't got a bad word to say about the whole show, can't wait till next year, it was so well ran/organised it was fantastic. For anyone who was part of organising it, all I can say is a huge congratulations, it was brilliant 

Roll on Waxstock 2013


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## ianFRST

Concours Car Care said:


> You should have come over and said hello Ian. That FRS looked ace


i didnt even realise you had a stand?? i did say hello to you briefly, you was on the shinerama stand when i walked past and said hello. you big mofo :lol:


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## Leemack

pmsl

:thumb:


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## butchrs500

Hi there me and dave showed my rs500 there i thought show was really good some really nice people there and all judges were great and friendly the quality of cars was outstanding in show and i think every stall we went was friendly some i will deal with again some stalls didnt have price lists on which was a little confusing and the mc was a little confusing to other than that great cars and nice people there and looking forward to waxstock next year which im sure will be bigger and better


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## Prism Detailing

I personally thought it was amazing, bringing the countries detailing community together. I dont see how anyone expected it not to be anything other than trade stands inside as thats what detailing is about...products, tools and skill, and the trade stands mostly had excellent demo's on and allowed you to play with products, and spent time giving great advise.

I think all involved did a fantastic job, not only the organisers but all the traders/manufacturers and the people involved in making the show run smoothly.

I met many valeters at the show and i know someone mentioned valet bashing going on, i didnt hear that at all, and not sure where it came from but many valeters were at the Dodo Juice stand wanting advise about products and they were just as keen to know about the brand as the "detailers" were.

Some of the cars on the show and shine were outstanding and a credit to the owners.

The KDS Lambo was amazing 

Adam Rayner did well at presenting, did feel like a **** when Gaz ran away from the stand and left me speaking to him over the PA system, but im sure with the accent no one understood me anyway lol and then the swirl police girls invading the stand and getting a pic (i will be hunting for that pic lol)

The burgers were amazing and prices were what were expected for a show.

It was nice to meet a few people i wanted to for a long time, Marc @ Heavenly, Paul @ Ultimate Shine (not seen in years), Steve (MKV), Rob @ Gtechniq, Lee @ Concours (had a good chat with him, nice guy) spotted a few but didnt have time to chat to 

I liked the singer btw, she was really good, mellow background music worked well with the theme of the show 

Personally i would like to thanks Dom & PJ for the invite, had a great day, love working with the Dodo guys, thanks to Gaz for putting up with me and hopefully this is a start of something that will be annual event and with the turnout im sure it will happen, it can only get bigger 

and this is a good thread in replied if the right way, constructive feedback only helps to improve things for future events 

Robert @ Prism Detailing


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## J1ODY A

I did not attend, I'm on holiday - have I mentioned that? Over 30 degrees today 

Anyway, I stand by my other post...

_"I guarantee next years will be better... I will be there

The photo's look good, it's usually more a chance to put faces to usernames, and get some cheeky deals - which sounds like you guys did.

Was there anywhere for people to show their own cars they brought? That's always nice at a car show."_

Suppose if this linked up with other car clubs, it could serve the same purpose as I'm sure most of us are also members of our own car manufacturers forums & could get a small gathering together?!


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## Lupostef

I really enjoyed it and really can't put any negativety on a thing! The missus came along with me which I was dreading as I thought she would be grumbeling after half an hour, can't say I would have blamed her as you wouldn't catch me at something of the equivalant i.e make up convention :lol: but she wasn't and enjoyed it all as did I . 

My only slight critasim being the machine demo area where DaveKG was could have been a little bigger and had a few more test panels as it seemed very popular and I'm sure more people such as myself would have liked to have a whirl before buying a new machine (which I did anyway) :lol: But holding the Flex pe14 2 150 did make my mind up for me . 

I think if this carries on it will keep growing and expanding and for a first time thing I think 99% of people will agree it was a huge sucess :thumb:

All in all had a great time and will 100% be attending Waxstock 2013 or anyother similar DW event :thumb:

Stef :wave:


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## n_d_fox

Overall for a first outing i thought everyone involved did an awesome job. There were some really cool touches to the show and the ambience felt chilled and relaxed which made the whole place and everyone either displaying their cars or traders selling their products very approachable.

It was good to meet up with a few old faces and also to put some faces to names from the forum(s).

Personally i thought the main traders hall felt a bit like a trade show but then a bunch of stands selling products would be difficult to feel like anything else. I'll admit that because those that werent selling their own products were selling a lot of the same stuff i did have a good mooch round first and then chose what i wanted from the reseller offering the best price but i suppose thats only natural.

It was good to see all the familiar names though and the demos from the likes of 3M, Rupes and Autosmart were worth a watch. From talking to a few of the guys with more space there would have been more demos / displays going on so i agree with Lee's comment about opening both inside halls to give everyone a bit more space.

Like i said though, for the first bash i couldnt fault it. Taking the best of what was there yesterday and building on that will surely bring bigger things and continued success. It'll attract more visitors and more who want to show n shine too i should think.

Well done guys :thumb:

My pics are here - http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.335028463255098.77089.174298162661463&type=3 - I'll add the rest when i get them off Steve's camera.

Cheers, Nige


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## Griffy

Again, this is from the 'other' thread :tumbleweed:

320 mile round trip and horrendous weather/driving conditions on the way there yesterday left my car looking in a very sorry state....so if you saw it in the car park then yes, it did need a proper clean 

However, I did enjoy the show and bagged myself some goodies too (but still managed to forget to buy a new AB foam lance :wall: ) I took some photos of a few of the cars in the hall and I think my favourites were the green focus rs, the black beetle and the Cortina that was born in the same year that I was :doublesho

The 'Swirl Police' kindly posed for me to take their photos and looked good enough that even my mrs said "I would" bless her :argie:

So, thumbs up from us and congratulations to the organisers and thank you for delivering an enjoyable day out....count us in for next year please 

Andy & Angie.


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## -Kev-

Concours Car Care said:


> For me, and i'm being honest.
> 
> *It would be ace to have both sides of the hall open for maybe loads of cars and exhibitors cars. But then this may be a natural progression anyway.*
> 
> I was totally happy with it. All the staff were friendly and made us very welcome.
> 
> I am ashamed to say i never got to come to the DW stand :wall: I FAIL.


i'll second that, particually as we both mentioned it to each other 
i'm still annoyed that i did'nt get to meet Gordon, Nick and various other people that i wanted to :wall:


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## mustang-owner

Hi all,

Well as a 50+ year old visitor, and not in the profession, I have some comments to make base on my observations of the day.

Firstly a big thanks to the organisers of the event. It is the first of this type I have attended (I was quite prevalent in the late ‘70’s at various Custom Car shows with my ’71 Mustang Mach1 blown & injected 429).

So my constructive criticism:

First off I thought the £10 entry fee was a little high for on-the-gate entry fee. For this I would have like to see a “goody bag” with complementary samples from the various trade stands, along with a map and schedule of events.
As I was attending with 2 others, this made the entry cost £30 without food or drink, which I feel is a little high.
Some other shows I attend, albeit outside events, have entry fees as low as £6 per car. This encourages more visitors, and the chance for the vendors to maximize their investment. Obviously the cost per pitch is higher with a lower entry fee, but this can work well as vendors have to think carefully how they are going to attract custom – making for some really super stands and clever marketing.

I thought there was a lot of repetition in the main hall with many traders pushing very similar products in the same manner (i.e. polishing bonnets). Perhaps the traders could get together and each focus on highlighting an individual product from their range. I would have liked to see stands dedicated to interior detailing, leather restoration, engine-bay detailing, wheel detailing and refurbishment, painting/powder coating/chroming, etc.
The body wrapping by 3M was very clever and the staff were really informative.
If the other half of the arena was open, I would like to see a “Presentation Area” where vendors could perhaps give a maximum 30 minute presentation of their range (or single product) to a seated audience. All vendors could use the same technology (i.e. projector, PA and PC), and this would give vendors the chance to promote their products professionally, and the potential customers could obtain something more than a “quick sound-bite” of what’s they have to offer.

The 16 cars in the atrium were very nice examples and a credit to their owners, but only 16 cars. Hopefully the next event will have double or more exhibits. I no longer have my Mustangs, but have a tidy example of an Audi A2, so maybe next year I’ll ask if I could show it off.

Maybe I missed what was happening outside in the wet demo area, but there seemed to be several cars lined up being scrutinised but no information to hand as to what was occurring.

As per others comments, the MC couldn’t be heard very well, so a better PA and schedule of events would have helped.

I was hoping I would be able to see a “Master-Class” demonstration of car detailing, perhaps with a vendor (or multiple vendors) claying, washing, polishing, waxing and interior cleaning vehicles. As a non-professional this would be very useful, and maybe I’d be able to identify the mistakes I make when trying to detail my own car.

So, all things considered, for a relative newbie, it was a nice day out (and the weather was kind), but I left wanting more (which isn’t a bad thing).

Well done, and I look forward to the next one. :thumb:

Cheers

Jeff


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## Kelly @ KDS

mustang-owner said:


> Hi all,
> 
> I was hoping I would be able to see a "Master-Class" demonstration of car detailing, perhaps with a vendor (or multiple vendors) claying, washing, polishing, waxing and interior cleaning vehicles. As a non-professional this would be very useful, and maybe I'd be able to identify the mistakes I make when trying to detail my own car.
> 
> So, all things considered, for a relative newbie, it was a nice day out (and the weather was kind), but I left wanting more (which isn't a bad thing).
> 
> Well done, and I look forward to the next one. :thumb:
> 
> Cheers
> 
> Jeff


Jeff , i think for next years show this is actually something i would like to do through out the day , i have enough staff behind KDS that between us we could do a very good demo of the whole process , would mean a few cars needed thou , this way all day you could come and go between the different demos as you please , some could stay all day watching me machine correct , another could watch the washing and prepping stage for most of the day.

the only down fall i find is it needs 2 staff per station so one can be explaining what when why while the other is doing the what when why .

doing a demo on your own ends up a man talking bout what he does .

maybe head cams, on big LCD screens with mic attached as i am up for that in the future :thumb:

edit to say , this could then be streamed onto DW after the show has ended for the guys who dont make it :thumb:

kelly


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## D.Taylor R26

had a brilliant time yesterday at waxstock :thumb:

it was so refreshing to attend such a well organised show which with a few exceptions was very well layed out and had 16 fantastic cars on show. 

little touches like getting the flowers hooked round your neck on entry and all the traders being very approachable really helped me personally feel part of the day and get involved. 

thanks to KDS for there masses of useful info and great demos. that aventador was the star of the show though. id have paid the entry fee alone to look at it! 

got some great products and advice from the traders all with a decent discount from 5 pound off AF sealants to 15 pounds off a flex carry bag for my 3401. 

also had a good chat with Rob from gtechniq about the coatings and some great p1 polishing tips. 

im sure many more cars will entry the arrive and shine next year now people know what to expect (including myself)


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## Leemack

Kelly @ KDS said:


> Jeff , i think for next years show this is actually something i would like to do through out the day , i have enough staff behind KDS that between us we could do a very good demo of the whole process , would mean a few cars needed thou , this way all day you could come and go between the different demos as you please , some could stay all day watching me machine correct , another could watch the washing and prepping stage for most of the day.
> 
> the only down fall i find is it needs 2 staff per station so one can be explaining what when why while the other is doing the what when why .
> 
> doing a demo on your own ends up a man talking bout what he does .
> 
> maybe head cams, on big LCD screens with mic attached as i am up for that in the future :thumb:
> 
> *edit to say , this could then be streamed onto DW after the show has ended for the guys who dont make it :thumb:*
> 
> kelly


That would be very good mate


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## Huey

Copied and Pasted from closed thread

Overall both myself and my wife had an excellent day. This event was just the thing I think a lot of people wanted/needed.....This forum gives like minded people a platform to voice their opinions, but they're only their opinions, the other good thing about this forum is the ability to tap into the vast amount of knowledge that exists out there, which can sometimes be a little overwhelming/confusing for people like me who have a great interest in detailing, but sometimes feel a bit lost when trying to choose the right kit to get, whether its a wash mitt or a high end rotary.
The biggest thing I took from the show was (apart from the couple of hundred pounds of kit ) the chance to speak to some of the traders regarding specific products tailored to optimising the finish on my car......Thanks to the guys on the Scholl stand for all your help.....Shinerama for the bargains, Marc for the bit of help you gave me even though I knew you were really busy with the judging and time was getting on. (will be booking personal tution in the future). Even my wife thought it was a great day even though she thought she'd be bored rigid......kept her busy by using her plastic

Oh and before I forget, big thanks to DaveKG for all the advice (mine was the E60 in the embarassing bodies carpark) will be trying out the solutions you said may work and will keep you updated..thank you sir

Finally big thanks to the organisers, traders and everyone involved in making the day such a sucess.............roll on next year


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## Antbunt

It was the fist of its kind in the uk. It's a steep learning curve for everyone. It must take allot of doing to organise. Few years from now it will be as big as goodwood. Great day guys


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## shuggett

The whole day was very impressive, well organised and enough going on for all to enjoy.

A BIG thumbs up to Dom & PJ and John, who have worked very hard to get the 1st detailing show in the UK up & running, can't wait for next years event.

Also a huge thank you to Roy for helping me out saturday evening, much appreciated Roy.

The venue staff were excellent too.

The swirl police girls did brighten the day up too !! ( I wonder if that was PJ's idea )

Well done to all the other 15 owners who entered the show & shine competition, the standard will only get higher next year, I best make a start now.

Steve


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## leost

Was a great show got sum great deals.

Shud have 10 pros with a dirty car each team them up with a newbie and see what they can teach them and the crowds.

Only bad bit was getting bad treatment by sumone started off as a nobody and now has a big name,as they saying goes treat orthers as you wana b treated.you know who you are


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## mustang-owner

Kelly @ KDS said:


> Jeff , i think for next years show this is actually something i would like to do through out the day , i have enough staff behind KDS that between us we could do a very good demo of the whole process , would mean a few cars needed thou , this way all day you could come and go between the different demos as you please , some could stay all day watching me machine correct , another could watch the washing and prepping stage for most of the day.
> 
> the only down fall i find is it needs 2 staff per station so one can be explaining what when why while the other is doing the what when why .
> 
> doing a demo on your own ends up a man talking bout what he does .
> 
> maybe head cams, on big LCD screens with mic attached as i am up for that in the future :thumb:
> 
> edit to say , this could then be streamed onto DW after the show has ended for the guys who dont make it :thumb:
> 
> kelly


Kelly,

It's great that you may be able to put something together and I agree that it's a 2 person role.
I've tried headcams and they don't convey the message very well, but it's food-for-thought.
Streaming the content afterwards on DW it also a great idea.
Reading the various comments so far it seems this is a theme that would go down a storm.

Cheers

Jeff


----------



## b3n76

Copied from other thread...

l thought the show was very good and exactly what i was expecting.
This will get bigger and bigger in my opinion and i for one will be going next year.Im glad it wasnt like a car show and was more trade/demonstration based.lts different to anything ive been to before.As regards to cars in the car park why does everyone presume that every car is going to be stunning? There is no written rule on the level of detail a car should have this is purely down to the owners choice/abilities.Is'nt this the reason why people attend such events to gain knowledge and get products to improve there cars appearance.Everyone started somewhere.
All in all im very happy with my day out and well done to everyone invovled.


----------



## TheMilko2905

J1ODY A said:


> Was there anywhere for people to show their own cars they brought? That's always nice at a car show."[/I]
> 
> Suppose if this linked up with other car clubs, it could serve the same purpose as I'm sure most of us are also members of our own car manufacturers forums & could get a small gathering together?!


Hopefully no one will flame me, :devil:, for opening my mouth this time.

I totally agree with J10DY's comment above.

Maybe invites should be sent out to other forums, that's the way I found out about this forum and realised I was doing things that was actually making my paint worse.

There's no need to give these forums any discount on tickets or anything maybe have a banner with a link to the Wax Stock ticket sales site.

it will help spread the good practices we all use, increase foot fall and ticket sales and turn over for traders.

I did pass a comment, on the previous thread that I will not repeat, because I don't want to upset other forum members

But I did expect the chance for show visitors to participate, and then be able to get advice from more experienced folk.

Not everyone has hundreds of pounds to throw at the best, branded kit or be able to own or drive the top of the range car from their chosen manufacturer, but I am sure everyone on here shares the passion for a spotlessly clean motor

Apart from those two comments of mine, it was a good enjoyable day


----------



## Mr bean

As my first ever detail show i found it very good for a beginner lots of people willing to give advice and help and a good place to start up on detailing goodies 
i think it would be nice to see a complete demo from start to finish and maybe a few more cars on display :thumb:


----------



## Pugboi

Isis really enjoy the show spent to much money and had a good play about with a few machines !! 
Only prob I can see with inviting car clubs is that if you pick one club over the other it may well start a war !! What I earn is if you ask a vw club then someone turns up from clio sport and says we like to keep are cars clean aswel etc

Just my 2p's worth !! Also I would be more then happy to give up my weekend helping sort stuff out for next years show


----------



## Tazz

please no car clubs, it would be a shame to ruin a good show, the organisers will be inundated with facebook groups with so many sh*t cars that it will look like a tesco car park

if people want to bring their own car in, they should apply and email pictures in with some details of spec, just a thought


----------



## TheMilko2905

Ok. No direct invites for certain clubs. 

But what about pitches, for club members who use both their car owners club forum and DW.

That way it's a double edge sword


----------



## Thorpy

I think for its first year it was a decent turn out i'd attend again.


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## MidlandsCarCare

I thought it was awesome. The only thing I'd change is the location, echoing thoughts around a location with better transport links, like the NEC.


----------



## Dave KG

Speaking as someone who both visited and took part in the show (but did none of the real hard work of organising!), I have to say that for me it was a great event and a great chance to spend some time back on the detailing scene...

Speaking as someone who used to frequently travel hundreds of miles in a weekend to go to detailing meets across the country, it is impressive to see just what is possible with a lot of time and effort put in, and where the detailing scene has gone over the years - it really is getting much bigger now, and I think this show proved it and it was great to be a small part of that (hidden in a corner with my classic little machine demo  ). 

I don't often get to detail even my own car these days - having sunk myself into teaching (and loving every minute of it!) I find I have very little if any of the time I used to have. This weekend was a great opportunity to relive a little bit of days gone by for me in some ways, and it had a real feeling of purpose at the show that reminded me of some of the good old detailing meets - so on that very personal side, the day was a great thing to be involved with. And on a more "global" note, the atmosphere at the show felt very positive for me with lots of excellent questions and discussions as well as a chance to catch up with some old friends.

Great to see some very good suggestions and solutions coming through in this thread which can only serve to make next year's event (I am presuming there will be one!) even bigger and better - I kept my lab coat, so I'll be back next year... and perhaps I'll tidy the Volvo up properly and enter it in a competition for a bit of fun... a 160k everyday mile muncher that now lives on a farm and commutes daily through the Sma' Glen


----------



## slineclean

A BIG thank you Dave KG for your hard work and the demos you did :buffer: I learnt alot :thumb:


----------



## MitziMike

I did post my views on another thread which has disappeared for some reason  so i can't copy it.

In short i had a great day, many thanks to Dave :thumb: for his top advice at the Embarrassing bodywork section, will be putting into practice very soon.

The swirl police were an added bonus :doublesho


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## james_death

Big Thank You to One and all.

Great to see this off the ground rather than a forum meet up getting the manufacturers to get involved will have helped two fold.

One help to fund the project and two actually draw people in.

Think the balance of cars for the showdown was right, not too many to take up too much space as its not a car show but does show what taking pride in your car can do.

Shame not so many for the show and shine, would have gone in myself but the intended car had a knock and only back from bodyshop the saturday afternoon.

Would have appreciated more stands but a respectable spread.

Appreciated the Tool Bar, great idea i did not partake myself but did observe and DaveKG was great.

The crowd drawn to his demo's and talks was great.

Explaining and covering a good deal in laymans terms in a very concise and informative way... Well Done Sir...

Good to See Autosmart in Attendance.... For although the bonnet demo's were informative they are more specialised needing machines for the work.

However Autosmart there with one in the metal complete car was able to demo to the public waxes and trim dressings etc as well as paint correction.

The fact they had another outside to demo non correction products such as engine bay wheels and interior will have helped a good deal of folk especially the newer people just stepping in or contemplating stepping into detailing or simply wanting there vehicle as clean as they can get it.

A good day and great to put some faces to names, was nice talking to non members also and offering advice etc.

Again a Big Big thank you to the organisers.

*So all this talk of folk wanting another...

How did it pan out financially Guys???

Is it Viable for another Next Year????*


----------



## Phil H

Enjoyed the show! Got some great pics and the cars on show where fantastic!! 

As said in a previous post it would be nice to have the show more central even i was thinking NEC or Event city manchester? I was gutted i had to leave around 3pm as we had to get back and it was around 5 hour trip. But a big Thanks to the organisers as i'm sure its taken a lot of time and effort to do the show 

Maybe i was just blind (incase they where available) but i personally would have liked to have seen more samples / sample kits from various brands. There where quite a few brands / products i have not tried and would liked to have sampled their range. Maybe a 50ml/100ml sample kit of each of a product at a show price? 


I absolutely loved the KDS bonnet!! was like glass!!

Had a go on the Rupes Bigfoot!!  i want one!!! loved it


----------



## J1ODY A

Tazz said:


> please no car clubs, it would be a shame to ruin a good show, the organisers will be inundated with facebook groups with so many sh*t cars that it will look like a tesco car park
> 
> if people want to bring their own car in, they should apply and email pictures in with some details of spec, just a thought





TheMilko2905 said:


> Ok. No direct invites for certain clubs.
> 
> But what about pitches, for club members who use both their car owners club forum and DW.
> 
> That way it's a double edge sword


I didn't mean getting the local McDonald's modified cars - I mean people with a proper passion for their cars.. i.e. there are rogue elements to any car club, but I just feel by the look of the pics that there could have been more cars & we probably recognise the members cars more than the members :lol:


----------



## TheMilko2905

J1ODY A said:


> I didn't mean getting the local McDonald's modified cars - I mean people with a proper passion for their cars.. i.e. there are rogue elements to any car club, but I just feel by the look of the pics that there could have been more cars & we probably recognise the members cars more than the members :lol:


That's just what I've been trying to say.
I've been a ford owner for many years and have attended various shows over that period, I agree you'll always get the modded element, there was a few modded cars on the arrive & shine area and amongst the top 16 too.

I not into modding personally, I prefer the original look, but I recon 95% of manufactor forum members either have or want a spotless, shiney, prestine motor


----------



## Foxx

Well, our feedbck is that we had a great time, much respect to all for setting it up, running it well, and keeping things simple for the traders (and as traders go, we are about as simple as it gets). 

Also, now that Neilly Neil has had chance to roll up his tongue, and put his eyes back in his head, he wants to know if next year he can be the steward guiding the Swirl Police around?


----------



## Guest

OOOOHHHHHHHHHHH now where talking, and i wouldnt require payment, just danger benifits from the ladies


----------



## AndyC

So alarm goes off at 6.20 Sunday morning and I fall out of bed, attempt to wake up in the shower and then wheels down for a quick blast up the A1, hooking up with a few friends en route.

Fairly boring journey, livened up only by the numerous roundabouts on the A1 which are 205 heaven. Oh and the inevitable banter (footwear related this time at South Mimms).

Arrival 9.20 to be greeted by a tall chap in a high-viz who said "go that way" - not sure you meant offroad style Paul - sorry.

And into the hall to be greeted by 16 really rather clean motors - nice mix of old and new and good to see a couple of examples of 205-ness still flying the detailing flag too.

This meant the obligatory grovelling on the floor to look at the bits which normal people don't clean and the bits that even mechanics rarely see.

And then into the main hall - few familiar faces and plenty to part you from your hard earned too. Quick trip to Autobrite to pick up a new foam loance (mine died last weekend - handy, eh?), some T1 from the good folks at gtechniq and some leather conditioner from Elite for my sofas.

Back outside to have a gander at the arrive & shine chaps and ladies and wondering if I can steal that M5 Touring and be halfway to anywhere before anyone noticed. 

Giggled at the dancer in his slippers (and rather glad some of the Southern lot didn't make it as there was a ton of material for future curry nights right there) and back inside.

Bumped into Mr KG, Messrs 2k and nogrille and had a proper catch-up.

Helped my friends choose some products and line up which machine polisher they'd be going for and then it was about home time.

Sincere apologies to Dom for not entering the speed detailer contest - more out of a fear of being shown up than anything else mate, honest!

Apologies too for not speaking to others who I recognised.

And I didn't perve at the swirl police - honest Mrs C!

So to the summing up bit;

Waxtsock as the first show of its kind in the UK worked on the levels it needed to. I walked in on Sunday having lost 99% of my detailing mojo and after 10 minutes genuinely thought "this is what I used to do". Other things in life have taken over and for the most part absolutely rightly too but I left after a few hours having got a bit of a spark back so thumbs up to all involved with the organisation.

I knew in advance that there'd be a load of traders there flogging stuff so no complaints. I knew what I wanted to buy too and got a good price on all 3 items - saw a few bits which interested me but having done thousands over the last 10 years or so I really have got most of what I need day-to-day.

The cars on show were varied and had all clearly had a lot of time and effort spent so kudos to their owners - I know how much time and patience it takes.

Arrive & shine was a good idea too - makes a change from just dumping your car in the carpark.

I think 2013's show will move on from this - I'll be there for sure and maybe with something a bit more "DW-worthy" too.

What could make it better? Hmmmmm....

- More hands-on demonstrations in smaller groups - maybe workshops in specific areas such as wetsanding, chip repair etc.
- More S&S cars - the more the merrier!

I think inviting other clubs to join in isn't such a bad thing - yes there'll be politics but any big show has this in spades and if Waxstock is to grow then managing everyone's expectations becomes part of that growth. What it'll also do is attract a wider audience, there to follow "their" marque and then looking at whatever else is on show etc.

It was too easy to compare it with the old C&S days which were nothing like this in fact (more of a get together for a few mates and their mates and their mates' mates too etc.) but had a feel which hadn't been matched for me until Sunday. Yes some faces have moved on, mine included, and some are less missed than others but the overall feel was right there which surprised me in a good way.

I came away very impressed - well run, an excellent first show with a very solid foundation on which to build and it got me slightly excited about polishing cars again. Which is all it needed to do for me - well done chaps.


----------



## Mr Singh

I thought it was a great show with good atmosphere. There's so much the organisers would have learned from this experience so I'd feel pretty bad to give negative feedback, though only thing I would say is I expected there to be a bigger turn out. I attend a fair few shows at the Peterborough showground and it looked really oversized for the attendance. Though I guess we could argue its quality cars vs quantity of bad ones! Otherwise it was a top effort, 10 out of 10 from me! 

Look forward to the next one


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## nogrille

AndyC said:


> Arrival 9.20 to be greeted by a tall chap in a high-viz who said "go that way" - not sure you meant offroad style Paul - sorry.


not sure they were my exact words but I'm glad you toned it down! :lol:


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## TheMattFinish

My views of the day

We arrived at 7am where Autosmart met all my expectations and many for the wash bays, i expected the santa pod queue of people for buckets of water, but yet was met with a jet wash and lots of water  made mincemeat of the flys and road grime from a very wet journey up!

I came up with the owner of the car after he asked me to clean it for him and enter the arrive and shine competition! Much to his delight and my surprise we was asked to move the car and compete in the top 16 inside! WOW some of those cars... the cortina, the beetle  205 gti i could go on! The guys were fantastic the judges from John from zaino, marc from heavenly all made us feel very welcome when i felt completely out of my depth and league! We did ourselves proud and even didnt finish last  

Anyway my feedback for the show...
- the guys from shinearama were amazing as usual! got all my new gear for a while (about 2 weeks) 
- the lambo! WOW I saw this at the KDS beginner day, Kelly your team worked wonders it was gleaming!
-The swirl police! now i would have liked to see more! Maybe im just a typical bloke but i wanted to see them everywhere 
- To have the whole of the hall would have been great more demos and more showcased cars from traders and also pro detailers

Overall i think a massive congratulations should go to the organisers and everyone that turned up for the show and shine, arrive and shine and all the people who came to the show!

Its the first of its kind from a blank canvas and i think it ran very smoothly! Met some lovely people who i'm going to stay in touch with and will see at WAXSTOCK 2013


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## SteveTDCi

Here's my 3p 

I went along to the first show with a compete open mind, i had already decided it was going to be a trade show with some cars thrown in and to an extent thats what i was greeted with.

Baring in mind it cost £20 to get in for the both of us (which i think is reasonable) i was a little disappointed in how the traders were set up. I have used 3/4 of the traders there as a mail order company and was expecting some healthy discounts, i didn't go there with the intentions of buying much and as it happens the most i spent was £1.80 on a bottle of Oasis 

I thought it was organised quite well, everything was laid out well and i liked the area given to the show cars. Despite living in Peterborough its the first time i've been to the arena and i thought it was quite a good venue. I appreciate the comments about people having to travel but i guess on the whole its a reasonably central area and with good connections both to the roads and trains.

The arrive and shine was a disappointment, no offence to the cars that entered but it really did have the feeling of a few cars that could be bothered to clean them just left outside, the hilman imp got my vote btw 

The traders, for me i want to see offers, i don't want to have to ask to see prices, barter etc, if there would have been prices up on all stands then i probably would have purchased something but i don't want to stand around asking how much is this etc ... comparisons to normal shop prices would have been good.

Demonstrations on products would be great as would samples that you could purchase so you can trial different waxes.

The speed detailer, it was kind of stuck up against the wall and while it was done with the best intentions it could have been so much more, it could have been an important part of the show, something that people could learn from. Perhaps its best if the traders that did attend had an half hour slot to demonstrate their products or tutorials along the lines of the dodo training days. Something where people can go and learn (like a cookery show) I want to learn things, all of the traders offer services so why not let them show off ? I would have happily paid KDS to do some paint less dent removal on my car, you could have parked it up and demonstrated it to the visitors, the same applies to leather recolouring ....

FOr me it was lacking something, and i'm sure that was other car clubs. You could either ask car clubs to bring there top 5 cars or have a shiny car park area where people could park on the condition the car was spotless, it doesn't have to be a full blown concourse event but its a show dedicated to car cleaning so why not have clean cars on display ?

I'm sure there is more i can think of, but in the meantime thanks to the guys that created the concept and those traders that did attend without them there wouldn't have been a show in the first place. Hopefully in 10 years time when i've hung up my 2 buckets and lambswool wash mitt i will be able to say I can remember going to the first show all those years ago.


----------



## CliveP

Well I can't see the 'first' thread to copy my comments from, but no worries, I'll repeat them (even if slightly different again)!

Firstly *I really enjoyed it *- it was exactly what I expected it to be!

I met some people I'd met before and *cemented some good friendships, worth its weight in gold.*

I really *appreciated the machine 'test' area *- it helped me make my mind up on a polisher I fancied - way above what I need for the nmuber of cars I have time to do - but I don't care, I now know that machine is going to get added to my collection.

I enjoyed some *demos*

I *picked up a new product *I wanted.

I *enjoyed some great natter *about this hobby!

I wasn't too bothered, or rather, *didn't expect, 'fantastic' show deals* (although there were some and I grabbed a couple) - as in my mind I know due to internet shopping, margins for resellers are likely to already be hard pressed and therefore are unlikely to have much more leeway, unless a reseller wants to shift 'older' stock or promote a new product - with the exception of those who make and resell their own products who might have a bit more margin to play with

Hope that helps, *Thanks to all*, and roll on next year!

Regards,
Clive.


----------



## Waxstock

A quick note from all the organisers to say thank you for your feedback on this, and even the 'closed' thread. Some great points have been made and despite 2012 being a real success by 99% of third party accounts (I still can't believe we pulled it off ) we will aim for an even better 2013.

Some realism needs to be injected into proceedings though.

No location will be right for everyone. If you want the costs of the NEC, where they charge as much for PARKING as we did for advanced entry in 2012, then you may need to wait some time. Visitors and organisers don't win at big venues. Big venues win at big venues.

And conversely, if you want a cheap show in a field that may be rained off, with mud and grass everywhere, again, you may be out of luck. Unless you'll only pay a fiver for entrance, because, believe me, that will be your venue when that happens.

Reality check one.

It takes time to _establish_ a show. We created Waxstock from concept to reality in four months. All the branding, the Swirl Police, the bike in the foyer, Kelly's bonnet, an Aventador showpiece car, the parachute jump, Kim's Corner, crate weight guesswork, the nod to Woodstock with a solo singer as a lunchtime intermission... all the little touches some of you saw and some of you missed... they were all created by a small team in 4 months with a lot of help from a lot of generous minded people. Thank you to them all; they know who they are.

However, due to a small team and constrained budgets, a hundred Swirl Police, 02 Arena style LCD screens and free samples for everyone - with 'free' entry because it's a trade show (yet SEMA charges royally!) just isn't going to happen. Even a small feature takes weeks of planning and the two people who run it on the day get looked after. Even the stand space and power for a feature like the Tool Bar, costs us, as organisers about 500 GBP to lay on.

Onto reality check two.

It cost tens of thousands of pounds to hold Waxstock at a 'mid' ranking (but very nice, thank you, Peterborough) indoor venue and to lay on all the legal administration required. A show in a field can cost nothing. A show in a modern venue costs a lot more - the cleaning bill was 2k GBP alone, just to give some perspective...

Please bear this in mind. You can have more, but it may cost more. Even what you got this year should have cost a lot more, for exhibitors and visitors, to make it 'worth doing'.

So if no-one is buying a new Aventador because of this, and the organisers took on a second full time job for four months of their lives, why bother?

Because all those involved, from organisers to staff to exhibitors, saw that it worked.

We saw the future and it had Swirl Police in it. We WILL be having a Waxstock again. And we WILL be listening to your feedback this year. But we want you to embrace it for what it is... a major stepping stone from an Open Day, bursting with innovative features like the Tool Bar and Embarrassing Bodywork, new competitions like Speed Detailing... and new exhibitors - some of whom had never been seen before at UK car shows. Rupes from Italy. Flex from Germany. 3M. Paintshield. All these embraced an unknown show and we believe they'll be back next year.

Let's look at other areas of feedback.

CAR CLUBS

We invited over 30 car clubs this year, albeit at short notice. Two responded. Thanks for your support guys! If you are in a club, say how good Waxstock was and mention it to the administrators or owners. Get involved next year. It won't be a boozy **** up in a field with camping overnight, so many won't want to come. But it could still be fun and well worth entering the show and shine.

EXHIBITORS

We invited every known brand or manufacturer we could find in the UK. Nearly 40 showed up and there were about 60 stands or features to keep you busy. Some had date clashes. Some didn't see what we were trying to do and probably hoped it would fail. It didn't. Many had offers or show promotions and were friendly.

If you want more exhibitors to attend, ask these brands and manufacturers to come along. If you want cheaper show prices, tell them. We subsidised pitches heavily to ensure you all had stands to visit and something to buy (at prices they set and may or may not put on the bottles). We even looked after exhibitors by putting 'house' features in the poorer spots, like the Tool Bar in the furthest corner. YOU may like all the action in one area, but traders want footfall and hate certain spots. We don't put features out of the way because we want to. We do so because we want exhibitors to come back.

PRO DETAILERS

We want the pros to get involved. Again, pro showcases were heavily subsidised but there was a lack of interest. If you are a pro and don't showcase, your space will inevitably go to someone selling washmitts or polish. That's a reality. We had car spaces that had drop outs at the last moment. Maybe people don't want their work scrutinised. But I never saw people being *****y or judgmental at Waxstock. We set up the Speed Detailer event for pros... and many ran a mile! It was only those who saw it was a bit of fun that got involved. No reputation needs to be damaged.

SHOW AND SHINES

We want more in the Arrive and Shine. To all those who commented that there should have been more in the Arrive and Shine and then admitted they didn't enter, there's your answer. I dedicate an Alanis Morrisette track to you...

Autosmart kindly laid on a multi lane wash bay at substantial hassle and expense that was horrendously underused. We even laid on a mobile valeting van and pressure washer for the Top 16 for two hours, and then some people couldn't even make use of that due to their timings. If you want to win the Showdown, make time for it. Have the right attitude. Daily drivers WERE given an advantage over trailered garage queens. But we want the Showdown to be the best concours for the best cars. What's the point in giving every old beater a massive handicap? We need to reward excellence but encourage access. The judging, as Marc explained elsewhere, was fair and non-biased. You could use any product you wanted - none of that 'only sponsors products' BS you find at some events. You could be a pro or amateur, because at concours events the 'amateur' that wins often has a pro do his Ferrari and dropped off moments before by transporter anyway.

And that leads us neatly to a simple message.

*Get involved or support the event next year.*

Make it what it could become. Look after the show and it'll look after you. We can't alter the weather, accidents or even the venue-specified food pricing. But we can listen and we will. No show is perfect and this is a very specialist and niche show that we (hopefully) got more or less right. If you want a modified show, a classic car show or a family day out with facepainting and bouncy castles, it may never be right for you. We will, however, try to make it as right for the detailing scene and car care industry as we can - whether punters or traders.

If you attended this year, thank you. It worked, against all kind of odds.

If you're coming next year, we look forward to seeing you there... wherever it is, whenever it is, whatever it costs, whatever the weather... because if you will attend despite the niggles and rough edges, we'll put on an even better show for you. You're who we're doing the show for, and you're welcome.

Here's to Waxstock 2013.


----------



## SteveTDCi

Nice post, if its in Peterborough next year i might even enter something


----------



## Spoony

With more time and planning of probably attend next year and make it a weekend away with the missus and just do Waxstock on the Sunday.

I like the concept, and it's there to build on. Not everything will come off first time and sure the organisers will have a huge session looking at what went well and at what could be improved upon for further shows. 

Personally I just didn't consider the expense of it for me until it was too late and so I didn't have the spare cash. I'd like to go for the banter and to meet some of you guys.

If you need any assistance for next year, you know where I am.

I won't be entering any show and shines as the drive is a bit far lol so my car would be filthy.


----------



## shuggett

Waxstock said:


> A quick note from all the organisers to say thank you for your feedback on this, and even the 'closed' thread. Some great points have been made and despite 2012 being a real success by 99% of third party accounts (I still can't believe we pulled it off ) we will aim for an even better 2013.
> 
> Some realism needs to be injected into proceedings though.
> 
> No location will be right for everyone. If you want the costs of the NEC, where they charge as much for PARKING as we did for advanced entry in 2012, then you may need to wait some time. Visitors and organisers don't win at big venues. Big venues win at big venues.
> 
> And conversely, if you want a cheap show in a field that may be rained off, with mud and grass everywhere, again, you may be out of luck. Unless you'll only pay a fiver for entrance, because, believe me, that will be your venue when that happens.
> 
> Reality check one.
> 
> It takes time to _establish_ a show. We created Waxstock from concept to reality in four months. All the branding, the Swirl Police, the bike in the foyer, Kelly's bonnet, an Aventador showpiece car, the parachute jump, Kim's Corner, crate weight guesswork, the nod to Woodstock with a solo singer as a lunchtime intermission... all the little touches some of you saw and some of you missed... they were all created by a small team in 4 months with a lot of help from a lot of generous minded people. Thank you to them all; they know who they are.
> 
> However, due to a small team and constrained budgets, a hundred Swirl Police, 02 Arena style LCD screens and free samples for everyone - with 'free' entry because it's a trade show (yet SEMA charges royally!) just isn't going to happen. Even a small feature takes weeks of planning and the two people who run it on the day get looked after. Even the stand space and power for a feature like the Tool Bar, costs us, as organisers about 500 GBP to lay on.
> 
> Onto reality check two.
> 
> It cost tens of thousands of pounds to hold Waxstock at a 'mid' ranking (but very nice, thank you, Peterborough) indoor venue and to lay on all the legal administration required. A show in a field can cost nothing. A show in a modern venue costs a lot more - the cleaning bill was 2k GBP alone, just to give some perspective...
> 
> Please bear this in mind. You can have more, but it may cost more. Even what you got this year should have cost a lot more, for exhibitors and visitors, to make it 'worth doing'.
> 
> So if no-one is buying a new Aventador because of this, and the organisers took on a second full time job for four months of their lives, why bother?
> 
> Because all those involved, from organisers to staff to exhibitors, saw that it worked.
> 
> We saw the future and it had Swirl Police in it. We WILL be having a Waxstock again. And we WILL be listening to your feedback this year. But we want you to embrace it for what it is... a major stepping stone from an Open Day, bursting with innovative features like the Tool Bar and Embarrassing Bodywork, new competitions like Speed Detailing... and new exhibitors - some of whom had never been seen before at UK car shows. Rupes from Italy. Flex from Germany. 3M. Paintshield. All these embraced an unknown show and we believe they'll be back next year.
> 
> Let's look at other areas of feedback.
> 
> CAR CLUBS
> 
> We invited over 30 car clubs this year, albeit at short notice. Two responded. Thanks for your support guys! If you are in a club, say how good Waxstock was and mention it to the administrators or owners. Get involved next year. It won't be a boozy **** up in a field with camping overnight, so many won't want to come. But it could still be fun and well worth entering the show and shine.
> 
> EXHIBITORS
> 
> We invited every known brand or manufacturer we could find in the UK. Nearly 40 showed up and there were about 60 stands or features to keep you busy. Some had date clashes. Some didn't see what we were trying to do and probably hoped it would fail. It didn't. Many had offers or show promotions and were friendly.
> 
> If you want more exhibitors to attend, ask these brands and manufacturers to come along. If you want cheaper show prices, tell them. We subsidised pitches heavily to ensure you all had stands to visit and something to buy (at prices they set and may or may not put on the bottles). We even looked after exhibitors by putting 'house' features in the poorer spots, like the Tool Bar in the furthest corner. YOU may like all the action in one area, but traders want footfall and hate certain spots. We don't put features out of the way because we want to. We do so because we want exhibitors to come back.
> 
> PRO DETAILERS
> 
> We want the pros to get involved. Again, pro showcases were heavily subsidised but there was a lack of interest. If you are a pro and don't showcase, your space will inevitably go to someone selling washmitts or polish. That's a reality. We had car spaces that had drop outs at the last moment. Maybe people don't want their work scrutinised. But I never saw people being *****y or judgmental at Waxstock. We set up the Speed Detailer event for pros... and many ran a mile! It was only those who saw it was a bit of fun that got involved. No reputation needs to be damaged.
> 
> SHOW AND SHINES
> 
> We want more in the Arrive and Shine. To all those who commented that there should have been more in the Arrive and Shine and then admitted they didn't enter, there's your answer. I dedicate an Alanis Morrisette track to you...
> 
> Autosmart kindly laid on a multi lane wash bay at substantial hassle and expense that was horrendously underused. We even laid on a mobile valeting van and pressure washer for the Top 16 for two hours, and then some people couldn't even make use of that due to their timings. If you want to win the Showdown, make time for it. Have the right attitude. Daily drivers WERE given an advantage over trailered garage queens. But we want the Showdown to be the best concours for the best cars. What's the point in giving every old beater a massive handicap? We need to reward excellence but encourage access. The judging, as Marc explained elsewhere, was fair and non-biased. You could use any product you wanted - none of that 'only sponsors products' BS you find at some events. You could be a pro or amateur, because at concours events the 'amateur' that wins often has a pro do his Ferrari and dropped off moments before by transporter anyway.
> 
> And that leads us neatly to a simple message.
> 
> *Get involved or support the event next year.*
> 
> Make it what it could become. Look after the show and it'll look after you. We can't alter the weather, accidents or even the venue-specified food pricing. But we can listen and we will. No show is perfect and this is a very specialist and niche show that we (hopefully) got more or less right. If you want a modified show, a classic car show or a family day out with facepainting and bouncy castles, it may never be right for you. We will, however, try to make it as right for the detailing scene and car care industry as we can - whether punters or traders.
> 
> If you attended this year, thank you. It worked, against all kind of odds.
> 
> If you're coming next year, we look forward to seeing you there... wherever it is, whenever it is, whatever it costs, whatever the weather... because if you will attend despite the niggles and rough edges, we'll put on an even better show for you. You're who we're doing the show for, and you're welcome.
> 
> Here's to Waxstock 2013.


In my opinion, to put that together in 4 months is an amazing achievement.
Waxstock management should be VERY VERY proud.

Steve


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## cortinajim

Wonder if the mention about old beater a massive advantage was my old green machine ,at least i had the guts to enter


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## Kelly @ KDS

Well when we spent as much time as we did on painting the waxstock bonnet ,
not once did i think it would be the only show (the reason for not having a date on it) or think we wont be at the next one . 

We as a company done everything we could in the short time span to find a willing KDS customer and his car , 
the staff to travel up early sunday morning to join in (unpaid using their own fuel),
to have a friend help out with driving up a van (that i had to borrow to get bonnets there for speed detailing and the painted bonnet and now owe that customer) and help out with setting up and cleaning the cars after the drive up in pouring rain for free ,
(all thou i bet i could of got a few helpers to clean the aventador) this was all done to join in with something i total believe in and want it to be the best it can be and grow . 

its the first time i have been on stage as such and spoke into a mic , i was bricking it but wanted the best for the show , 

I judged the cars (first time ever for me) and took it very seriously as the people that BOTHERED to enter have spent some much time and effort getting the cars to that level and then getting them to the show , i could not believe the dedication some of you guys have , so gave them my time in judging with the same dedication . 

The speed detailing was and planned to be a bit of laugh , at one point i was shouting at Roy from pro valet trying to put him off and make people laugh , he was the first up and though "lets make this start how its meant to be taken" maybe roy did not get through because of my banter but thats the whole point have fun and i know roy would not care. 

Steve hugget won the comp this is after being last man at the bar with me at 1:30 in the morning and steve wanting to gate crash a wedding , not once was he worried about winner either comp he had entered. 

I have all ready got many ideas for next year so i guess i am in which means the staff are too . 

honoured to be part of the first ever show , and for all the guys that said on facebook i want a day off , we make the show more interesting if we are working on the day :buffer: take the day off after the show and be part of it small or large 

cant wait for the next one 

kelly


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## Waxstock

cortinajim said:


> Wonder if the mention about old beater a massive advantage was my old green machine ,at least i had the guts to enter


Your Cortina isn't an old beater, Jim, and you know it :thumb:
It came third which was amazing, and benefited from some modifiers to reflect its age.

What we don't want is for an average car to beat a genuinely outstanding one due to modifiers. Otherwise the 1908 poorly detailed car will beat the perfectly detailed 62 plate car.

Excellence will be rewarded but we don't want elitism. And nor do we want positive discrimination where genuinely average cars of a certain age have an unfair advantage.

Genuinely outstanding cars will compete with genuinely outstanding cars, and gain no advantage or have no disadvantage due to age, mileage, type or use. All factors need to be considered, and considered they were in 2012.

And as you say, you did have guts for entering. And glory for coming third. Well done.


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## steve from wath

enjoyed the whole day

yes things were a little limited but from small acorns...

some good offers on the day

met up with some old faces

at the end of the day it was is and is a car detailing show,,so dont know what some peeps expected
there were plenty of folk walking out with bags
bring on the new,bigger,improved 2013 show

well done to all who were involved,the demonstrators,the sales teams,the organisers


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## Kelly @ KDS

Now do i start what i have always wanted to do to my very own supercharged M3 :thumb: it would make a good show car 

i have been warning the staff for a while that it could be soon its gets full striped down and rebuild do i now have a reason to do it ????

kelly


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## StevieM3

cortinajim said:


> Wonder if the mention about old beater a massive advantage was my old green machine ,at least i had the guts to enter


Jim your car was stunning:thumb:


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## Paintshield

Exceptionally well put Waxstock, I think what transpired surprised many of us in the trade given as you put it it was an unknown quantity.

Until the recession bit deep in 2009 /10 we regularly attended several shows a year at all levels.

From what my guys tell me this was <from a trade perspective> one of the smoothest and simplest organisationally <and that really matters>. A trader can ask no more than to be busy all day, from that standpoint it was a success from our perspective.

You will be aware of the background to the 458 <which I can not discuss publicly> however what that shows is A Even the very biggest shows can get things horribly wrong, and B How respected the Organisers and the DW community are in the minds of traders and their clientele that they will let us play with their serious metal at an untested event.

We are definitely in for next year and lets talk early as we normally like to go out with 6-8 show cars from the supercar end and I am sure we could collectively give at least one hall of Sema a run for its money next year if we all do our part <the other 6 might be a stretch mind> 

Very well done and thank you!


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## Kelly @ KDS

Forgot to say the enzo that we painted for a customer was booked to be at car fest this year which was a double booking with waxstock , 

well i had a message from the owner after viewing my facebook of the day that he should of been at waxstock and maybe next year he can make up for it . 

He only went car fest as he had sold a car to chris evans (a very rare one at that) and he had to bring the enzo along to chris's own show. 

it was in the pipe line to have enzo and aventador at this years waxstock but hey next year maybe we can have cars like this , 

i dont know all these horrid chav cars that are to be part of waxstock 


kelly


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## Phil H

would love to see the M3 Kelly!


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## Magic Detail

Kelly @ KDS said:


> i dont know all these horrid chav cars that are to be part of waxstock
> 
> kelly


horrid chav cars with paint where there should be "bare weave" no less!!!! :lol:


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## Guest

Well in my opinion what was achieved in 4 months? WOW!!!!!! Didnt realise it was made up in that much time, make more of an effort next year lads :lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:


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## Eco Touch UK

Well put Waxstock, cracking post. :thumb:

For us, experiencing our first event of this sort, we didn't really know what to expect or what we would need in anticipation but the help, support and total professionalism that came back from Dom and the Waxstock team was as if they had done lots of these before. 

Really impressed from start to finish, there was a brill atmosphere on the day, lots of help and support available on the set up day too and we hope to be a part of future Waxstocks!  Well done all!


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## shuggett

mattthomas said:


> My views of the day
> 
> We arrived at 7am where Autosmart met all my expectations and many for the wash bays, i expected the santa pod queue of people for buckets of water, but yet was met with a jet wash and lots of water  made mincemeat of the flys and road grime from a very wet journey up!
> 
> I came up with the owner of the car after he asked me to clean it for him and enter the arrive and shine competition! Much to his delight and my surprise we was asked to move the car and compete in the top 16 inside! WOW some of those cars... the cortina, the beetle  205 gti i could go on! The guys were fantastic the judges from John from zaino, marc from heavenly all made us feel very welcome when i felt completely out of my depth and league! We did ourselves proud and even didnt finish last
> 
> Anyway my feedback for the show...
> - the guys from shinearama were amazing as usual! got all my new gear for a while (about 2 weeks)
> - the lambo! WOW I saw this at the KDS beginner day, Kelly your team worked wonders it was gleaming!
> -The swirl police! now i would have liked to see more! Maybe im just a typical bloke but i wanted to see them everywhere
> - To have the whole of the hall would have been great more demos and more showcased cars from traders and also pro detailers
> 
> Overall i think a massive congratulations should go to the organisers and everyone that turned up for the show and shine, arrive and shine and all the people who came to the show!
> 
> Its the first of its kind from a blank canvas and i think it ran very smoothly! Met some lovely people who i'm going to stay in touch with and will see at WAXSTOCK 2013


well done Matt,

you've got many great comments on the Celica.

steve


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## AndyC

Is there anything to stop a campsite? Only asking as the Peterborough venue looked feckin huuuugggeeee when we arrived with loads of green spaces crying out for tent city - proper Woodstock vibe too (minus the various illegal substances of course!)

Appreciate the logistics were enough for a single day but perhaps worth thinking about for future events?

Peterborough worked fine for me - if the show were further to travel my only consideration would be to probably leave a noisy and thirsty old car at home and travel in the derv powered yawn-mobile.


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## herbiedacious

Four months in the making? Even more amazing for a first event! l thoroughly enjoyed the day. Even though it meant a 400 mile round trip l found the venue ideal, the facilities are very silmilar to a lot of racecourses,but how many of them are available on a bank holiday weekend? Good choice ,and a fairly central location IMO.
Seen the MC at quite a few car events,and didn't think he did a bad job considering he didn't know much about detailing. Again, because he was a familiar face, and his patter wasn't too bad,a good choice.
l managed to get away with spending less than £200 on goodies but only by avoiding a few stands,crazy really,as the whole point was to have a good nose about,but l knew for a fact i would end up spending a fortune! 
Really enjoyed the speed detailing competition and all the demo's going on all round but missed the Embarrasing Bodies event 'cause l couldn't find the car park it was meant to be taking place in!
l spotted someone with a white Waxstock 2012 t-shirt on, are these available anywhere? Maybe next year DW could have a clothing stall?
Counting the days to Waxstock 2013.


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## Brazo

herbiedacious said:


> Four months in the making? Even more amazing for a first event! l thoroughly enjoyed the day. Even though it meant a 400 mile round trip l found the venue ideal, the facilities are very silmilar to a lot of racecourses,but how many of them are available on a bank holiday weekend? Good choice ,and a fairly central location IMO.
> Seen the MC at quite a few car events,and didn't think he did a bad job considering he didn't know much about detailing. Again, because he was a familiar face, and his patter wasn't too bad,a good choice.
> l managed to get away with spending less than £200 on goodies but only by avoiding a few stands,crazy really,as the whole point was to have a good nose about,but l knew for a fact i would end up spending a fortune!
> Really enjoyed the speed detailing competition and all the demo's going on all round but missed the Embarrasing Bodies event 'cause l couldn't find the car park it was meant to be taking place in!
> l spotted someone with a white Waxstock 2012 t-shirt on, are these available anywhere? *Maybe next year DW could have a clothing stall*?
> Counting the days to Waxstock 2013.


:thumb:


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## cortinajim

I had a shirt done for the weekend with Waxstock 2012 but PJ said it was out of date by Sunday night but it still looked well on the day 
I can always put it on for Cortina cleaning


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## SteveTDCi

AndyC said:


> Is there anything to stop a campsite? Only asking as the Peterborough venue looked feckin huuuugggeeee when we arrived with loads of green spaces crying out for tent city - proper Woodstock vibe too (minus the various illegal substances of course!)
> 
> Appreciate the logistics were enough for a single day but perhaps worth thinking about for future events?
> 
> Peterborough worked fine for me - if the show were further to travel my only consideration would be to probably leave a noisy and thirsty old car at home and travel in the derv powered yawn-mobile.


They do camp there (motorhome show usually camps there) if not Ferry Meadows 1 mile from the venue has a camp site :thumb:


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## theDodo

herbiedacious said:


> l spotted someone with a white Waxstock 2012 t-shirt on, are these available anywhere?
> Counting the days to Waxstock 2013.


those shirts were made only for staff, as a thank you for giving of their time and passion to Waxstock. i might do a set of tees with some Waxstock on for sale to the public (defo for next year)



cortinajim said:


> I had a shirt done for the weekend with Waxstock 2012 but PJ said it was out of date by Sunday night but it still looked well on the day
> I can always put it on for Cortina cleaning


i simply was very impressed that you had done so and pointed out that it would be a collectible - a one off shirt for the first ever Waxstock. 8) i loved it really (maybe you detected my jealousy) 8)


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## cortinajim

I will come and see you at the classic show with it on then put it away for ever :wave:


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## EliteCarCare

Having traded at various shows over the last six years, I can honestly say that for a first show Waxstock was WELL beyond my expectations.

We attend shows that have been running for years and the level of organisation isn't upto the standard of this one.

I underestimated how busy it would be, we were originally planning on 3 members of staff but it changed at the last minute to two. We were rushed off our feet all day and I only managed to leave the stand once for a few mins. 

Despite that, we thoroughly enjoyed it, I love chatting to customers, got to speak to a few detailers and fellow traders who were passing by. Didn't manage to get round to all the other trade stands purely due to time but from what I could see they all looked good! :thumb:

It'll only get better with time, but hats off to the Waxstock team for a VERY good effort. 

A point that was raised earlier regarding pricing, all of our products were individually priced and we also had promotional banners up so hopefully people could see exactly what the pricing was. We are open to feedback (good or bad) if anybody has any. 

Looking forward to 2013.

Alex


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## ITSonlyREECE

I thought it was a fantastic day out looking at a bit of car porn and taking advantage of some cheap deals! I did plan to put the car on show outside BUT the exhaust started to blow from the Cat on Thursday night and I'm now waiting for it to be sorted - Maybe next year will be my time 

A big thanks to the people who organised it and I will definitely be going to the next one!


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## james_death

Ill try and drum up interest on the Rover 75 Forum. For the Arrive and shine.

Lots of very well kept motors there.

A page on the forum laid out with details of what was going on with pics etc could help, been just one page link to post up in different owner forums online.


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## Mirror Finish Details

Concours Car Care said:


> For me, and i'm being honest.
> 
> It would be ace to have both sides of the hall open for maybe loads of cars and exhibitors cars. But then this may be a natural progression anyway.
> 
> I was totally happy with it. All the staff were friendly and made us very welcome.
> 
> I am ashamed to say i never got to come to the DW stand :wall: I FAIL.


OOps epic fail, I did not know they had a stand either.

Was a great show and enjoyed every minute of it, worth the hours travelling and having to put up with Foxx for our shared room of manly farts etc. Thankfully I did eventually find my bed after a few attempts.


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## TheMattFinish

shuggett said:


> well done Matt,
> 
> you've got many great comments on the Celica.
> 
> steve


Cheer Steve

Your car was immaculate, reflections was awesome! Same again next year? :thumb:

Matt


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## iMation

Hi all,

Waxstock for me was fantastic, everything i needed in one place to sort my cars apperance. i even bought some products.

The top 16 were amazingly clean even if im being biased (being Amiladys fella) the The Focus, 306 GTi and Cortina were perfection!

I took many pictures from the two days me and the Mrs were there (www.kakepipe.com)

For next year, it would be awesome to see some seminars/workshops.. even if i had to pay for a place.

On the Arrive and Shine front, it was a little disapointing but im sure next year there will be many more that take part.

Well done to the event organisers and i cannot wait till next year to be part of it again!

Stu


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## Pugben308

Me and my mate attended and both said how good it was, like a few have said would be good to have a few other competitions and some more "offers" overall very pleased and looking forward to it becoming bigger and better


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## Turbo Tony

Hey, I had another thought that might be good for 2013 - how about a bay where a couple of guys are doing minor dent-pulling and chip repairs cheaply?

I'd imagine everyone's got one defect on their paintwork they just cant help noticing.


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## Kelly @ KDS

Turbo Tony said:


> Hey, I had another thought that might be good for 2013 - how about a bay where a couple of guys are doing minor dent-pulling and chip repairs cheaply?
> 
> I'd imagine everyone's got one defect on their paintwork they just cant help noticing.


We have got this covered for next year's if needed .
It was going to be.demos on cars live throughout the day

Kelly


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## Thug Pug

Waxstock said:


> Your Cortina isn't an old beater, Jim, and you know it :thumb:
> It came third which was amazing, and benefited from some modifiers to reflect its age.
> 
> What we don't want is for an average car to beat a genuinely outstanding one due to modifiers. Otherwise the 1908 poorly detailed car will beat the perfectly detailed 62 plate car.
> 
> Excellence will be rewarded but we don't want elitism. And nor do we want positive discrimination where genuinely average cars of a certain age have an unfair advantage.
> 
> Genuinely outstanding cars will compete with genuinely outstanding cars, and gain no advantage or have no disadvantage due to age, mileage, type or use. All factors need to be considered, and considered they were in 2012.
> 
> And as you say, you did have guts for entering. And glory for coming third. Well done.


Would it be possible to find out where other cars in the top 16 finished or have I missed it somewhere?

Thanks Robert.


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## Mirror Finish Details

I'm up for some PDR next year, I will do a demo area if interest.


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## R2P

was a great day out little small but good first show give few years should be booming once word gets about. was a good day


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## SteveTDCi

Mirror Finish Details said:


> I'm up for some PDR next year, I will do a demo area if interest.


Yes please, I would even be happy to pay to have mine done (if I still have it)


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## HeavenlyDetail

Thug Pug said:


> Would it be possible to find out where other cars in the top 16 finished or have I missed it somewhere?
> 
> Thanks Robert.


Ideally these results wouldnt be revealed although i know some managed to see their positions directly after the show , only the first 3 places or prize winners generally know their position. It gives everyone an incentive to go away and try to push a little harder and also stops people lower down the order from feeling bemused when they have to understand the standards were so high any one of the 16 cars on show could easily have walked away with a major prize in any other competition. I personally didnt even total my results up and have no idea who i picked as the top 3 and i prefer it that way. The results are now locked away and wont be revealed as they shouldnt be. You have to ask who would want to be labeled as last when there is absolutely no need to show this positioning. Its not the norm and ive never judged a competition and let competitiors see their score or position.
I can say your car was a credit to you though as im a major fan of 205,s and it was superb. :thumb:


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## Pugboi

Think waxstock 2013 will be one of the mist talked about car shows if it goes ahead !! :thumb:


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