Field Report: How Brands Fused Passion and Business at the 2025 SEMA Show -

A drift demo shredding tires to a cheering crowd? Hundreds of meticulously decked-out rides and a wild after-party festival? You’re at the 2025 SEMA Show, the automotive aftermarket global business event, which took place Nov. 4-7 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

With more than 153,000 attendees from 140 countries and regions, including 2,300 exhibiting brands and 500 first-time exhibitors, the show serves as a crossroads for commerce and creativity. It’s where the industry’s top innovators and brands gather to define the future of automotive performance and personalization.

“Every year, the SEMA Show introduces technologies and ideas that transform the automotive landscape,” says Tom Gattuso, vp-events at SEMA. “From ADAS solutions to alternative propulsion and performance builds, innovation here drives progress across the entire aftermarket.”

The show taps into its audience’s passion for high-octane experiences. Those include the Battle of the Builders and SEMA Fest, which this year featured musical performances by Queens of the Stone Age, The Black Crowes and Neon Trees, along with heart-pounding motorsports demos. Add to that the HorsePower Rodeo smoking up the Diamond Lot by the West Hall, and the Art Walk in the hallways between the LVCC buildings.

To serve the community year-round, the association also just launched SEMAConnected, the automotive industry’s new online hub for brands to showcase their latest innovations, resellers to reach high-intent buyers, and enthusiasts to find high-quality automotive parts and products. Mirroring the organization of the show floor, it allows visitors to select their area by interest, vehicle, and featured products, among other categories, as well as create build lists.

On the show floor, it was all about hands-on demos, high-pressure action, larger-than-life inflatables, and meticulous attention to detail. Here’s how the brands showed up.

Milwaukee Tool had a commanding presence with a signature red exhibit, featuring several demo stations and a very popular wall with the newest tool lineup.

Carlyle brought its new edgy vibe and invited young technicians to build their dream toolboxes while participating in the brand’s pit pass to access multiple experiences on and off the floor, including drag races and tattoos (Partner: Exhibitus). Read more on Carlyle’s program here.

Bestop Inc. took attendees to their favorite destinations with an outdoor setting for its new ETOP systems for Bronco and Wrangler (Partner: Altitude Exhibits).

Fanttik brought a polished European vibe with an architecturally impressive exhibit, setting a stage to showcase its premium tire inflators and other products.

Boothbabes are (thankfully) pretty much a thing of the past, but sumo wrestlers? Japanese brand SVG stopped aisle traffic with a pair of champions, bringing cultural flair and an instant impression.

3M blended history and innovation with demos grouped by repair stages set against a backdrop of an actual auto shop. An oversized neon roll of tape added a modern, vibrant touch, illustrating how the brand never stops innovating.

Celebrating its 50th anniversary with SEMA, Mothers invited attendees to get up close and personal with a curated lineup of the hottest builds, including the winner of the Battle of the Builders that the brand sponsors. The outdoor activation was topped with oversized inflatable product replicas and featured the products in action.

Method Racing Wheels argued that every great build starts with a Method box, and created a full-sized trophy truck from corrugated cardboard, “dropping” it from the brand’s box right onto the floor. The Beyond the Box installation took over 10,000 square feet of corrugated cardboard to complete.

“The customer journey begins when they open the box and a wheel comes out. From that point, it’s their vision,” says Matt Harris, general manager at Method. “This is a celebration of the community of our racers, our partners, and our people, and the passion that fuels off-road motorsports” (Partner: POP Displays).