National Tyres a Finalist in £35 Million Entrepreneur Challenge

National Tyres has been named as a finalist in the North West England and North Wales region of the Bank of Scotland Corporate £35 Million Entrepreneur Challenge. National will now compete with four other entrepreneurs to secure a £5 million funding package, free of interest and charges for three years.

The next stage will see business partners Alan Revie, John Caldwell and John Taylor present their business case to a judging panel featuring two well-known and incredibly successful entrepreneurs. Matthew Riley, the national 2007 Entrepreneur Challenge winner from Daisy Communications, and senior representatives from Bank of Scotland Corporate and Deloitte. The panel will question National Tyres and the other finalists on their future business plans, as well as looking for someone with the entrepreneurial flair, spirit and vision that sets them apart from the rest and makes them an outstanding choice to receive the once in a lifetime funding package that could change the face of the business.

If it is successful in the Entrepreneur Challenge, National Tyres said it will use the funding to accelerate its plan to expand its retail network by a further 100 branches over the next five years. According to the company, there will also be a corresponding growth in alternative business channels, including developing its web-based sales system.

The judging process will take place on Thursday 20 November and will be followed that evening by a dinner and award ceremony at the Imperial War Museum in Manchester, where the winner will be announced.

In 2001, the three current shareholders bought National Tyres from Continental AG and, through investment in three training centres, IT, equipment and products, have transformed what was a loss-making business into an industry leader, boasting one of the lowest rates of staff turnover in the industry.

John Taylor commented: “We have made great strides since we acquired the business in 2001 and are now looking to a further significant expansion over the next five years. £5 million funding will allow us to achieve our targets at a much faster rate and help to ensure the next five years continue to build on our success to date.”

Richard Faulkner, Area Director at Bank of Scotland Corporate, added: “We are delighted that such a renowned national company is based in the North West and the management team has done a fantastic job in the seven years since it acquired the company. National Tyres now has exciting expansion plans and I’m sure the judges will be impresses by their vision of the future.”

Bank of Scotland provides funding to more Management Buy-Outs than any other bank in both the UK and Europe and is now recognised as the top UK arranger for PFI/PPP deals. Total lending at December 2007 stood at £109.3 billion.