Caffeine and Exotics Wows Car Enthusiasts  by Marilyn Pearlman

Five thousand people who own exotic cars or just like to look at them paid $5.00 to join a parade of Lamborghinis, Ferraris, McLarens, Rolls Royce, Aston Martins, Porsches, Lotuses, Maserati, Bentleys, Audis, GTR's, Corvettes, and Vipers on Sunday, April 17 at Lenox Square. The occasion was appropriately called Caffeine and Exotics, a unique show partially benefitting Make a Wish Foundation.

Prior to the event, the Caffeine & Exotics team chose the best out of 300+ applications from private owners to display their exotic cars. "Our goal was to get 50-60 exotic cars and we ended up with 230," said Bruce Piefke, creator of Caffeine and Exotics as well as the owner of the “Caffeine and Octane” meet (acquired from Autotrader Classics) held on the first Sunday of every month from 8:00 am--11:00 am at Atlanta's Perimeter Mall. He plans to put together Caffeine and Exotics events several times per year.

Sponsors for the show on April 17 included: Butler Tires & Wheels, Porsche Atlanta Perimeter, Magnum Collision Repair Center, Rolls Royce Motorcars of Atlanta, Motorcars of Georgia, Detawiled Designs Auto Spa, and Granite Garage Floors.

"I knew that very few exotic car owners would get up on Sunday morning to attend Caffeine and Octane at Perimeter Mall, so I created a special show aimed at them." Piefke spent 25 years organizing commercial events and got into the automotive genre in recent years helping Autotrader Classics and other companies. He clearly has a real magic touch and now car shows are in his blood.

The show drew a large variety of car enthusiasts, such as Steve Bracken, who owns a 2015 Z51 Corvette and a Cadillac for everyday driving; management consultant Dr. Craig Gustin who drives his 1967 Mark 2 as his main car around Buckhead; and Chris Grigalunas, a former race car driver and founder of Azul Motorsports where he shares his motorsports passion with the masses.

The 2016 season will continue with Caffeine and Exotic shows set for June 19th, August 21st and October 16th. They plan to have a couple of ‘Car Owner Only’ events with dates to be announced later. See more at http://caffeineandexotics.com/.