IT was a packed house on hand for popular car show Heelz & Wheelz at the Portmore Town Centre in St Catherine on Sunday, February 19.

“This turnout is spectacular. We delivered. We brought out the trucks, we brought out the cars, we brought out the competition, so actually the motor car scene is back,” Andrew Lee-sing, event organiser, told the Jamaica Observer’s weekly Auto magazine.

Lee-sing made no bones about how the COVID-19 lockdown affected his Heelz & Wheelz brand, having to keep it alive by pivoting.

“We worked on expanding the brand, so we went into auto parts. Importing the parts and providing services, diversifying based on the lack of entertainment during the COVID pandemic,” said Lee-sing.

With the COVID-19 restriction long gone, automotive enthusiast of all types came out to watch or take part in the festivities. At the core of Heelz & Wheelz is its various competitions that featured trophies for things like Best Trunk, or Best Interior. One person extremely happy to have the car show back in action was Portmore’s Sukeisha Daley, CEO of Vitzsocietyja, a group of car owners dedicated to Toyota’s smallest hatchback, the Vitz. Daley was making her fifth appearance at the Heelz & Wheelz.

“It’s a great show, one of the biggest car shows in Jamaica, and if you don’t have a Heelz & Wheelz trophy that means your car is not the bomb,” said Daley.

Her 2012 Vitz caught plenty of attention in its full pink colour overhaul and the very unique trunk. While many would have filled their trunk with stereo equipment, Daley’s turned her Vitz into a mobile beauty salon, despite being a chef by trade.

“The reason for the beauty shop is because I usually act like a tomboy, and I wanted people to have a different opinion of me, that I was into female stuff,” Daley said.

The car as it is now began on Daley’s urge to bring attention to a car that she feels doesn’t get its due respect in the modification scene and to show that as a woman, she not only has an interest in cars, but can run a car crew. Thus, Vitzsocietyja was formed with the aim to bring a female touch to what is a predominantly male arena. While not an all-female crew, Vitzsocietyja current has 30 members.

For her efforts, Daley took home the award for Best Custom and Best Interior.

“We’re going to have three stagings this year, this is our first one. We’re going to have a Pop Up Series in June, then we’ll have one at the end of the year, but this one is a good turnout, well supported by patrons and the automotive industry,” said Lee-sing.