The Car Fleet Tyre Market; T&A talks to the people who really understand the business

The car fleet tyre market has seen some changes recently. The forerunner of fleet tyre management was, we believe, FTM, first established in 1991. Cutting to the chase, two years ago as part of the Montinex Group, FTM almost went to the wall when Montinex collapsed.

Its management included Kevin Parker, who was snapped up by National Fleet, then in the hands of Continental, and Dominic Bateson who in quick time arrived at the helm of General Motor’s backed Fit4Fleet. At the same time Kwik-Fit had been acquired by Ford and there was a drive to expand Kwik-Fit’s coverage of the fleet market. Sir Tom Farmer bought FTM from the receiver and brought in Mike Wise to operate FTM to cater for the independent sector alongside Kwik-Fit Fleet.

This was an arrangement which despite Mike Wise’s team’s success in delivering the contracts, remained uneasy as many independents questioned FTM’s autonomy from Kwik-Fit. Some simply had a dislike, or fear, of the Kwik-Fit ogre. Now that FTM has gone and Kwik-Fit Fleet has turned its back on the independents the sector is in a state of flux.

This, in depth feature airs the views of the top players in this important and growing sector.The two equity players, ATS and Hi-Q have leading positions in the sector though both freely admit to chasing Kwik-Fit. Central’s role is somewhat less, and anyway is masked in the figures of one of the larger fleet tyre management operation’s figures.

ATS Euromaster is in the invidious position of having lost two of its top management, both appointed from outside the tyre trade to bring in fresh approaches. The past year has seen ATS putting a great deal of effort into the retail outlets, perhaps at the expense of the car fleet sector. “The coming year”, says Ian Thomas, strategic development and interim sales director, “will see a redirection of emphasis and a development of the fleet sector alongside the ongoing retail developments.

“ATS Euromaster, which we will refer to from here as ATS, has been in the fleet sector for a long time, however it’s interests have historically been largely in the truck and agricultural sectors rather than the car and van fleets. In the truck fleet market ATS lays claim to 35 per cent of the tyre replacement market and 85 per cent of the truck breakdown market in the UK. The inroads into the car sector, though significant, are far less and Ian Thomas admits that in car fleet terms ATS is trailing market leader Kwik-Fit, though he stresses that the company’s second place in the sector is a long way ahead of the third largest player.

Ian didn’t say which was the third largest player but at present we might estimate that the honour falls to either National Fleet or Hi-Q, though if AA Tyre Fit is as successful as Centrica hope that position may change within the year.Paul Harrell, retail director responsible for Hi-Q advises T&A that the Goodyear Dunlop equity has been under review and through 2003 will be taking on a new stronger Hi-Q branding, with a reorganisation which truly strengthens Hi-Q, putting them in leading positions in some sectors of the UK market.Mike Wise who proved himself as a contract winner at FTM has been retained as the sales director for Kwik-Fit Fleet.