The 2015 Los Angeles Auto Show is open to the public from November 20 to 29.  Thousands of executives from the biggest car companies around the world will be in attendance along with over 4,000 journalists taking notes of this event, and asking questions on sales estimates and growth markets. In addition, hundreds of new cars will be presented, including 30 2016 world debuts.

The question is, “How important are new, flashy, cool cars for today’s millennials?” After all, these are the people who generally have the most disposable income and thus impact the economy. According to an article written in Fast Coexist by Darren Ross, not so much.  Indeed over the past few years, the “percentage of new vehicles sold to 18- to 34-year olds has significantly dropped.”  For example, “from 2007 to 2011, the number of cars purchased by people aged 18 to 34, fell almost 30%, and according to a study from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, only 44% of teens obtain a driver’s license within the first year of becoming eligible and just half, 54% are licensed before turning 18.”

It seems that the latest trend has moved away from fast Porsches and toward driverless cars.  People who like the suburbs tend to want to move over to driverless cars, when they become more readily available.  Perhaps driverless cars are today’s new Mercedes and those flashy cars just aren’t all that anymore.

Or maybe not.  It seems that there are still today, enough people who attach their identity to their cars.  Custom made cars these days include the DXP (the Delivery Expert) a car specifically designed to keep pizzas hot, by Domino’s Pizza.

And then of course, for those who are really serious about how their car is designed there is the option to design it themselves, online, via Autobytel.  This site now offers consumers the ability to build their own car online.  How many doors do you want?  What material do you want for the seats?  Do you need room for the family pet?  The customer makes all these decisions.  But even with this, visiting the site is hardly the same as being a guest at the auto show!  What this will ultimately mean for the LA economy remains to be seen.

The film and TV production industries in Los Angeles have been receiving generous tax incentives, following a law signed last year by Jerry Brown, California’s Governor.  Some argue that this initiative has been the driving force behind the increase in location shoots throughout the region.

During the third quarter of 2015, there was an escalation in on-location filming of 3.8% compared with the same period last year.  According to FilmLA, a third of this can be attributed to incentive-qualified projects.

This is great news for LA’s economy.  According to Don Knabe, Los Angeles County Supervisor, “Los Angeles County can never take for granted its history and position as the center of the entertainment industry. The impact of the California Film & Television Tax Credit has already made a huge impact on our ability to compete with other markets and their aggressive pursuit of production business. We must continue to work together across the region to retain this critical industry which provides hundreds of thousands of jobs, directly and indirectly, and billions of dollars to our economy.”

Aside from these tax incentives, there are other initiatives being taken to boost LA’s economy.  For example, the Economic and Workforce Development Department, “strives to improve the economic climate of Los Angeles through the provision of financing, technical assistance, training, business tax incentives, and workforce programs.”  This includes: Business Incentives and Financing Options, Business Transitions and Downsizing Services, Worksource Centers, Employers and the HireLA Youth Program, etc.

Tax incentives really make a difference to people choosing where to do business.  As FilmLA pointed out, “One barometer: There were 2,057 shooting days for scripted television shows filmed on location in the Los Angeles region for the three months that ended Sept. 30, a 54% increase from the same period last year.”

Amazon.com Inc. has now made it even easier for those in Los Angeles to never move a muscle. That’s because they just launched their one-hour delivery app called Prime Now in Los Angeles. People can order meals from restaurants to be delivered within the hour for $7.99. This rate is for Amazon Prime customers who already pay $99 a year for the program.

Local restaurants that are part of the plan include: John O’Groats Restaurant in West Los Angeles, West Hollywood’s Baby Blues BBQ, Sprinkles Cupcakes and Umami Burger.