Blue Suede Cruise 2015

Posted on June 25, 2015 by wanda • 0 Comments

Blue Suede Cruise 2015Hi Everyone, Can you believe it is that time of year again? I am so pleased to announce that for the fifth straight year, the Wanda brand will be the title sponsor of the 14th Annual AkzoNobel Wanda  Blue Suede Cruise event July 17-19, 2015, at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, OH! The Blue Suede Cruise is the largest Midwest street rod event of year—and one of the most fun, because it’s set to a retro 1950s theme—with hundreds of gleaming Hot Rods, Customs, Classics, Muscle Cars and Trick Trucks 1972 and older on display. In addition to the general car show, car buffs will enjoy a host of activities all weekend long, including:

 

  • Car Care Clinics hosted by WandaWanda Refinish Blue Suede Cruise
  • Quarter-mile Fun Runs
  • The Wanda Challenge Flag Start Race
  • Exhibitor Booths
  • Wanda’s Coloring Land for Kids
  • The Wanda Diner
  • Neon of Lights Parade with “Wanda” as Grand Marshal
  • The Smokey Burnout Contest
  • Phil Dirt and The Dozers performing live for the Saturday night concert!
  • The Fat Rat Fabrication “Ultimate Build-Off
  • Nostalgia Drag Racing Show
  • Vintage Fashion Show
  • Major Door Prizes
  • And so much more!!

Wanda Refinish BSC EventA complete schedule of events for the Blue Suede Cruise will be available on the Wanda website at wandarefinish.us. For event updates throughout the weekend, visit my Wanda Facebook Page. With a weekend this jam-packed with activities for the whole family, you won’t want to miss out on this year’s Blue Suede Cruise. Now who’s ready for cool cars, drag racing, fireworks and live music? I know I am!! I hope to see you there!

Filed Under: Wanda News Tags: , , ,

Wanda Makes a Fashionable Debut!

Posted on October 3, 2014 by wanda • 0 Comments

The Wanda ShopHi Everyone,

For the last several years many of my Wanda fans and Distributors have asked me how they can order some of my cool Wanda t-shirts to show off their Wanda pride, or to promote my Wanda brand to their customers.

Well, I’m very happy to announce that beginning October 1st my newly designed online merchandise store, The Wanda Shop, will be open for business to Distributors and fans alike, where you can “shop ‘till you drop” by simply going to www.thewandashop.com. The Wanda Shop features a variety of great looking apparel and accessory items including jackets, shirts, hats and other gear—all branded with my Wanda logo!

You can also find links to access The Wanda Shop through my web and mobiles sites at wandarefinish.us. Be sure to visit the store often to check out new products being introduced and to take advantage of special seasonal discounts.

The Wanda Shop is just one more example of how my team is working hard to help make your Wanda experience the best it can be!

For more information about Wanda and Wanda Waterbase products, or to find out about upcoming events and more, visit www.wandarefinish.us. Or visit my Facebook page for quick updates at www.facebook.com/wandarefinish.

Until then,

Filed Under: Wanda News Tags: , ,

Wanda’s Mobile Website is Ideal for Those ‘On the Go’

Posted on August 27, 2014 by wanda • 0 Comments

Wanda Refinish MobileHi Everyone,

Nowadays, shops have to move at a faster pace than ever just to keep up with scheduling. That’s why my Wanda Mobile Website is the perfect resource tool to help you quickly access product, technical, color and Distributor information right from your iPhone, Android, or other mobile hand-held devices.

The Wanda Mobile Website is super easy to navigate and offers amazing functionality. With just a quick click, all Wanda and Wanda Waterbase product MSDS and Technical Data Sheets can be downloaded as PDF’s right to the phone’s home screen in English, Spanish, or French. Other features include Environmental Regulations and VOC Charts for all territories in the US and Canada. It even includes  Wanda Color Tools and Color Documentation, as well as an iMatch Color Retrieval icon that can be easily downloaded to the phone’s home screen for instant access to car color searches and paint mixing information.

In fact, the mobile website is so easy to use that many Wanda fans prefer this as their number one go-to source for all things Wanda related. Add it to your mobile device today, by following the instructions below:

Adding Wanda Mobile Website to iPhones / iPads:

  • Open the Safari Web browser and navigate to www.wandarefinish.us.
  • Touch the action icon at the bottom of the Safari screen. It resembles a box with an arrow coming out of it. View the list of options. Tap the “Add to Home Screen” button.
  • Change the line “Auto Paint / Collision Repair” to “Wanda Mobile.”
  • Click “Add” in the upper right corner of the screen. The Wanda icon will now appear on your iPhone screen.

Adding Wanda Mobile Website to Androids:

  • Open the browser on your Android smartphone or tablet and go to www.wandarefinish.us.
  • Hit the settings button – it is three vertical dots, located in the top right of the screen. From here press the Star symbol.
  • Pressing the Star symbol will bring you into the bookmarks menu. From here you can edit the name to “Wanda Mobile” and select which bookmarks folder you want to save it into.

Go back to the browser settings menu and open the Bookmarks folder. Locate “Wanda Mobile” and press and hold your finger on it to place it on your home screen. Once you’ve done this, a new menu appears. Select “Add to Home Screen.” The Wanda icon will then appear on your home screen.

Filed Under: Wanda News Tags: , , ,

Next Stop, Woodward Dream Cruise August 16th

Posted on August 14, 2014 by wanda • 0 Comments

7-30-14-Wanda-Dreamcruise-BannerWeb-FNL

Hi Everyone,

Now that the Blue Suede Cruise is over, I am revving up for an exciting and exhilarating at the Woodward Dream Cruise this Saturday, August 16 with my Wanda Team and friends from Lingenfelter Performance Engineering.

Along with me signing autographs and distributing information on Wanda products, Lingenfelter will be showcasing a few of their gorgeous, high powered cars that are painted with Wanda finishes. I love the Woodward Dream Cruise because it’s not just a car show; it’s a glimpse of the past and an event where car enthusiasts show their love of all things automotive.

Did you know that the Dream Cruise started as a fundraiser for a soccer field in Ferndale Michigan in 1995?  Yes, that’s right and in a few short years, it evolved into the world’s largest one-day automotive event currently attracting over 1 million visitors.  With that many people attending it’s not hard to imagine the 40,000 muscle cars, street rods, custom and collector vehicles driving along the 16-mile stretch of Woodward Avenue through the communities of Berkley, Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills, Bloomfield Township, Ferndale, Huntington Woods, Pleasant Ridge, Pontiac and Royal Oak.

Wow! The Woodward Dream Cruise is a spectacular experience to drive or watch! Just seeing the cars, both classic and new racing their engines and cruising up and down the streets of the birthplace of the American automobile is so cool.

 

I hope to see you all there!

Filed Under: Events Tags: , ,

Summer Road Trips with Wanda

Posted on July 29, 2014 by Editor • 0 Comments

Hi Everyone,

I hope you’re enjoying the warmth and fun of the summer season—I know I sure am! The summer months for me are always busy with lots of traveling to various trade shows and events, where I get to see many old friends and make new ones.

On June 7th the Wanda team participated in the third annual KC Auto Paint Auto Show in Prescott, Arizona. As always, KC’s owners pulled out all the stops to ensure a great time of “giving back to the community.” One whole city block was closed in front of the store so that 77 area car buffs could show off their custom hot rods and cars. Each visitor brought a donated can of food as their entry fee to enjoy a full day of BBQ, live music, door prizes and exhibit booths. More than 300 people attended this fantastic event and even got a chance to learn how my Wanda brand refinish products deliver simplicity, color, and value. The collected food goods were then transported to a local food bank.

I then made a quick trip to Canal Fulton, Ohio, on July 12th to join the folks at United Paint Supply for a customer golf outing. It was a fun, laid back event where my Wanda brand got lots of attention at hole #1!

On July 18-20, I hosted the 13th Annual AkzoNobel Wanda Blue Suede Cruise event at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio, along with the whole Wanda team. This is the fourth straight year that we’ve been the title sponsor of Blue Suede Cruise and it was hands-down the best year yet! The weekend kicked-off on Friday with record-breaking attendance. The weather was beautiful and it was amazing to see the hundreds of candy-colored hot rods, customs, classics, muscle cars and trick trucks lined up. Dare-devils enjoyed the quarter-mile fun runs down the famed Summit Motorsports Park race track, and young and old alike enjoyed a great cookout and sock hop. On Saturday there were more fun runs, a vintage fashion show, my Wanda Coloring Land for kids age 2-16, and the Wanda Challenge flag start race. That was a real blast with eight racers and a variety of cars from a Gasser, to a Tempest, even a Henry J that was painted in my Wanda bright green color! Who knows, maybe my Wanda products helped give it the boost it needed to win the race! Visitors really enjoyed the Wanda Car Care Clinics co-hosted with Presta Car Care products, where they learned how to turn their cars from bare metal to gorgeous color—all protected with Presta’s great car care products. Later that night I was honored to serve as Grand Marshall of the Neon of Lights Parade. The evening concluded with an amazing fireworks show and live performance by the legendary Van-Dells. The event concluded on Sunday, but not until after I got to choose the winner of the Wanda Choice Award. The honor went to Mark Jaynes and his gorgeous two-toned 1940 Mercury Eight Convertible. Of course, another important highlight of the weekend was seeing Jim Hurst win the 2014 Crusin’ Times Hot Rod Build-off. His custom 1951 Chevy was a real beauty—and painted in my Wanda Blue Suede color. If you didn’t get a chance to participate in this year’s Blue Suede Cruise, I hope you’ll make plans now to attend next year. Check out some these great photos of the event.

Next on my calendar is the annual Woodward’s Dream Cruise on August 16th in Detroit, Michigan. Situated between the cities of Ferndale and Pontiac, Michigan, this wildly popular event draws more than a million car enthusiasts who gather to show off their custom and classic wheels as they cruise up and down Woodward’s Main Street. I will join the team at the Lingenfelter Performance Engineering exhibit booth, where my custom Wanda paint and finishes will be showcased on several LPE concept cars. I look forward to another fun day of meeting new people, signing autographs, and cheering on the many gorgeous—and sometimes zany—vehicles on parade.

With the fall season just around the corner, I’ll soon be setting my sights on the 2014 SEMA trade show in Las Vegas, Nevada, November 4-7, so stay tuned for more information about this exciting event and more, by visiting www.wandarefinish.us. Or visit my Facebook page for quick updates.

Until then,

Filed Under: Events Tags: , , , ,

Wanda Sponsors 13th Annual “Blue Suede Cruise” Event

Posted on June 25, 2014 by Editor • 0 Comments

Blue Suede Cruise 2014 eBlast

Hi Everyone, I’m pleased to announce that for the fourth straight year, the Wanda brand will be the title sponsor of the 13th Annual AkzoNobel Wanda Brand Blue Suede Cruise event July 18-20, 2014, at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, OH!

Blue Suede Cruise is the largest Midwest street rod event of year—and one of the most fun, because it’s set to a retro 1950s theme—with hundreds of gleaming Hot Rods, Customs, Classics, Muscle Cars and Trick Trucks 1972 and older on display. In addition to the general car show, car buffs will enjoy a host of activities all weekend long, including:

  • Car Care Clinics hosted by Wanda
  • Quarter-mile Fun Runs
  • The Wanda Challenge Run
  • Exhibitor Booths
  • Wanda’s Coloring Land for Kids and Wanda Diner
  • Neon of Lights Parade with “Wanda” as Grand Marshall
  • Nitro Dragsters and Jet Cars
  • Live Concert with the “Van-Dells” and Fireworks Display
  • Major Door Prizes
  • Nostalgia Drag Racing Show
  • Vintage Fashion Show

I’m also proud to once again be a co-sponsor of the second annual Cruisin’ Times Hot Rod Build-Off, held in conjunction with Blue Suede Cruise. The Cruisin’ Times Hot Rod Build-Off was created in 2013 by Cruisin’ Times editor, John Shapiro, as a way for amateurs to try their hand at custom car building. Two candidates are chosen from a pool of submissions to participate in the yearlong project.

Gary Boron and Jim Hurst have been selected for the 2014 competition and will engage in a classic Ford and Chevy lover’s face-off. Gary will build a custom car using a Ford body from the years 1949 to 1953. Jim will build a custom Chevy using a body from the same time period—both to be painted in Wanda’s Blue Suede color.

The builders, along with the magazine’s editor, visited the Wanda team in Troy, MI, last December to learn how to properly spray the refinish system. Gary and Jim will drive their custom cars into Summit Motorsports Park on July 18th for show-goers to vote on the winning car. Good luck, gentlemen!

A complete schedule of events during Blue Suede Cruise will be available on the convenient Wanda mobile website at wandarefinish.us. For event updates throughout the weekend, visit my Wanda Facebook Page. With a weekend this jam-packed with activities for the whole family, you won’t want to miss out on this year’s Blue Suede Cruise. I hope to see you there! Until then,

Filed Under: Events Tags: , , , , , , ,

Wanda Heads West for SEMA 2013

Posted on October 30, 2013 by wanda • 0 Comments

sema2013slider

Hi Everyone,

The colors and cooler temperatures of the fall season are upon us and you know what that means…it’s time to head west for the annual SEMA car show at the Las Vegas Convention Center, November 5-8! We’re just a couple of days away until the show opens and I’m super excited because this year will be unlike any other.

I will be there with the Wanda team to introduce show attendees to the simplicity, color, and value of my Wanda refinish brand at the AkzoNobel Booth #25043. The booth is located in the South Hall’s popular Racing & Performance area and is designed in an open, free-flowing configuration, with modular kiosks strategically placed to highlight each of AkzoNobel’s Sikkens, Lesonal, and Wanda brand refinish systems. At AkzoNobel, our research and technical experts are hard at work every day to ensure that no matter what size of job is required, our top-quality products will provide the performance, color match accuracy, and application-ease our customers depend on.

Of course, you can still expect to see my custom Wanda paint and finish stylings to be showcased on a brilliant Pacific Blue Karl Kustom Z06 ‘67 Coupe Corvette. And as always, I’ll be ready to sign autographs or snap my picture with Wanda fans throughout the week, so please stop by to say hello.

Be sure to get regular show updates on the Wanda Facebook page at www.facebook.com/wandarefinish.And don’t forget to check out my exciting new mobile website at www.wandarefinish.us, or wandarefinishmobile.com. See you there!

Filed Under: Events Tags: , ,

Wanda Launches New Mobile Website

Posted on August 27, 2013 by wanda • 0 Comments

Hi Everyone,

My new mobile website was completed just in time to make its debut at the 12th Annual AkzoNobel Wanda Blue Suede Cruise at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, OH, July 19-21. If you were there then you know first-hand what a fun and successful event it was.

iphoneMockupWanda

Check out some of the fantastic photos taken at the event in our Photo Gallery. Over the last couple of years, the Wanda team has seen a significant increase in the number of collision repair professionals wanting to use their mobile devices to get information about Wanda brand products.

Well, I’m very excited to announce the launch of my brand new Wanda Mobile Website to help you access the product, technical, and color information you need, plus news and event updates, blogs, Distributor information and more!

Using leading-edge technology, the Wanda mobile website is compatible with the Apple iPhone, iPad and other hand-held devices, and is designed with amazing functionality, easy navigation, and sharp clear graphics. It even looks and feels like a traditional “App” and can be bookmarked to the phone’s home screen. The site will automatically pop up when users type in www.wandarefinish.us, orwandarefinish.com and choose either the Canada or United States options.

With a quick click, all Wanda and Wanda Waterbase product MSDS and Technical Data Sheets can be downloaded as PDF’s right to the phone’s home screen in English, Spanish, or French. Other exciting features include Environmental Regulations and VOC Charts for all territories in the US and Canada, Wanda’s Color Tools and Color Documentation, as well as the handy iMatch Color Retrieval icon that can be easily downloaded to the phone’s home screen for instant access to car color searches and paint mixing information. Users will also find a Distributor locator and even information on becoming a Wanda Distributor—all at their fingertips. It just doesn’t get an easier than this, so check it out today!

In the meantime, I’ve still got some events that I’m participating in the fall, including the annual SEMA show in Las Vegas, NV, November 5-8. Be sure to get regular updates on the Wanda Facebook page at www.facebook.com/wandarefinish. Don’t forget to visit the new mobile website atwww.wandarefinish.us, or  wandarefinish.com and click on the Canada or United States link.

Filed Under: Wanda News Tags: , ,

Hope to See You this Weekend at the AkzoNobel Wanda Blue Suede Cruise!

Posted on July 15, 2013 by wanda • 0 Comments

Hi Everyone,
wanda blue suede cruise 1

I can hardly believe we’re already in middle of summer and that I’ll be seeing some of you next week July 19-21, 2013, at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, OH, for the 12th annual AkzoNobel Wanda Blue Suede Cruise event, where I’ve been the proud title sponsor for three straight years!

Set to a fun and upbeat 1950’s retro theme, this year’s Blue Suede Cruise promises to be bigger and better than ever. In addition to the car show featuring gleaming Hot Rods, Customs, Classics, Muscle Cars and Trick Trucks from 1972 and older, car care clinics hosted by Wanda Automotive Finishes, quarter-mile fun runs, Wanda Challenge Run, exhibitor booths, Wanda’s Coloring Land for kids, fireworks display and Neon of Lights Parade with me as Grand Marshall, show attendees will be treated to brand new events including:

wanda blue suede cruise 2–  Nitro Dragsters and Jet Cars

–  Live concert with Jay & The Americans (“This Magic Moment”)

–  Major door prizes all weekend long

–  Nostalgia Drag Racing show

–  Flame-throwing

Another Blue Suede Cruise “first” includes the Cruisin’ Times Hot Rod Build-Off, in which two amateur builders selected by the magazine will drive their custom Model A cars painted in a Wanda “blue suede” finish into Summit Motorsports Park on July 19th to face off for the title.

wanda blue suede cruise 3Event-goers are also encouraged to stop by the Wanda booth, where they’ll not only learn about the simplicity, color, and value of using my Wanda and Wanda Waterbase refinish products, but also see the spotlight shine on the Curing Kids’ Cancer organization and the classic 1932 Ford 3-window coupe on display.

Legendary performance car builder, Ken Lingenfelter of Lingenfelter Performance Engineering (LPE), recently purchased the charity car at the Mecum Spring Auction in Indianapolis, IN, to support the organization. Together, LPE and Wanda brand will promote the Curing Kids’ Cancer cause at the event and invite representatives from the organization to share their life-saving work with booth visitors and receive donations.

wanda blue suede cruise 4A complete schedule of events during Blue Suede Cruise can be found on my convenient new Wanda Mobile Website! Just go to wandarefinish.us, or wandarefinish.com and click on either Canada or United States. The mobile site provides a full web experience that’s easy to navigate with great graphics, and information that can be accessed in multiple languages. Or visit my Facebook page at www.facebook.com/wandarefinish for event updates throughout the weekend.

Car lovers and families alike will enjoy the wide variety of races and activities, so make plans now to attend this one-of-a-kind event!

Filed Under: Events Tags: , , , , ,

Distributor Spotlights – Len Crawford, Dale’s Paint Supply

Posted on May 26, 2013 by wanda • 0 Comments

Car refinish veteran, Len Crawford, has seen and heard it all. After all, he’s been selling a variety of well-known competitive car refinish brands for 37 years, so he isn’t easily “wowed” by typical brand performance claims. That is, until he strolled through a trade show two years ago and landed at the Wanda brand exhibit.

“I must have stood there talking to the Wanda representative for 45 minutes or more,” says Crawford. I was definitely curious about AkzoNobel’s value-priced product brand. I admit I was impressed by what I heard. Now there was only one thing to do, place an order and see how the products really perform in the field.”

Crawford took ownership of Dale’s Paint Supply of Colorado Springs, CO, 25 years ago growing the business to more than $1 million in walk-in sales each year. The business occupies 7,000 square-feet of retail and warehouse space with 65% of their sales in car refinishes, and 35% in architectural and light industrial paint products. Shortly after returning from the trade show, Crawford handed a quart of Wanda paint to one of his “regulars” and asked him to try it out. To his surprise, the painter came back the same week with rave reviews about the product’s ease-of-use and color matching capabilities. After that, word spread quickly and the products seemed to fly off the shelves ever since.

“It’s pretty rare to see products that actually exceed their performance claims,” said Crawford. “I’m sold and so are my customers. My Wanda sales have topped $250,000 last year.”  Dale’s Paint Supply hosted a successful “Evening with Wanda” event in September, 2010, to generate greater brand awareness and to educate customers on Wanda’s many cost and performance benefits.

To speak with Len Crawford about his experiences in the industry or with Wanda brand products, call 719-636-2635, or email him at Len5886@msn.com.

Filed Under: Wanda News Tags:

© 2021 Wanda Refinish. All Rights Reserved.

akzo-nobel