Detroit-based Auto Show Talent Agency Follows Toyota to Plano

Plano residents may not have heard of Productions Plus, but if they've been to the State Fair of Texas, they've likely seen the talent agency's spokespeople working the auto show.This year, an estimated 150 brand ambassadors will interact with fairgoers as they represent automotive brands such as Toyota, Lexus, Nissan, Volkswagen, among others.The staffing agency, which specializes in supplying product specialists for auto shows, opened its new location last month in Plano, close on the heels of Japanese auto giant Toyota making the Dallas suburb its new North American headquarters.The new location adds to its existing presence in New York, Detroit and Orange County. The decision to come to Plano followed Toyota's announcement to relocate here. They're located three miles apart on Headquarters Drive."All of our business partners have a presence typically within 15, 20 miles of where our office is," said Don Johnson, auto show engagement manager for Toyota. "The vast majority of our business partners have opened offices or added staff to existing offices to the Dallas-Plano area."Productions Plus has 11 full-time employees in Plano: company president Hedy Popson, one talent recruiter and nine account managers. It will hold a grand opening Sept. 21, the week before the month-long state fair, for which the company has supplied talent for more than 30 years. The fair and its accompanying auto show kick off on Sept. 29 and are scheduled to run through Oct. 22.The company works with 17 automotive brands and has more than 700 product specialists contracted for the auto show season, which runs from July through April. Of the 150 people representing manufacturers at the state fair this fall, about 50 percent will be local to Dallas, Popson said. The company has upped its recruiting events and will engage in Dallas' performing arts culture to look for new talent. Popson's team attends theater events, marketing events and holds open calls.At auto shows in Detroit and New York, the agency typically employs about 300 people."It used to be all models and actors, but I would say today that scope has changed," Popson said.  Continue reading...