ATLANTA – Credit union CEOs, finance and collection specialists, and other industry professionals from across the country attended the second annual National Auto Remarketing Conference for Credit Unions in Atlanta March 7-9, hosted by Manheim and CUDL (CU Direct Corp.).

The three-day event, held at Manheim’s industry think tank, the Manheim DRIVE Center, provided an insider’s look at the remarketing industry, offering insight to how credit unions could best leverage their remarketing programs. The event was specifically designed to help participants maximize vehicle value at auctions by making more informed decisions in their remarketing strategies.

The conference agenda included a visit to a sale at Manheim’s Atlanta Auto Auction and presentations on the auction process, reconditioning, salvage remarketing, Manheim Consulting and other topics. Freddy Hall, director of business development for Black Book, spoke about vehicle values, and Mark Coleman, co-founder and president of TitleAuctions, presented on the EasyStep Remarketing Program, designed by Manheim and TitleAuctions specifically for credit unions.

Response from attendees, many of whom participated in the inaugural conference last year, was overwhelmingly positive.

"We are a fairly large indirect lender with a significant number of repossessions to liquidate each month, and attending this conference for the second year validated for me the more sophisticated decisions we are making in our remarketing," said Jerry Liudahl, vice president of lending for Oregon Community Credit Union. "I would encourage any credit union with repossessions to look closely at how its remarketing strategy can be adjusted to add more dollars to the bottom line."

With the ongoing success and growth of the annual conference, Jon Schrock, director of national accounts for Manheim, said Manheim and CUDL will continue partnering in offering the annual National Auto Remarketing Conference for Credit Unions, and that the two organizations are already using feedback from this year’s event to begin planning for the 2008 conference.

"After doing this the past two years we are seeing more credit unions look to remarketing, not as an inconvenience, but as an area with real potential for increased returns," said Schrock.

Through its partnership with CUDL, Manheim is the preferred provider for managing the back end of participating credit unions’ portfolios. CUDL also provides its clients access to Manheim’s educational and training tools about the remarketing industry and offers the leverage to consolidate vehicles at auction so sellers get more attractive run times.