TWG Chair: Tyre Wholesalers Again Show Recession Resilience

As a man of 40 experience in the tyre trade – and with it the knowledge of three recessions – Tyre Wholesalers Group chair Ashley Croft is in a good position to comment on the effects of the current financial crisis (which, depending on whose opinion you are heeding, may or may not have come to an end). In his speech at the 2009 TWG Annual Lunch, Croft described the past year as a “harsh period”, but made clear that the recession had hit hardest in the tyre business where manufacturers were most committed to supplying original equipment. However, he stated, “replacement market traders have once again proved themselves to be relatively recession-proof”.

While volumes in tyre wholesaling have remained relatively static, he qualified, the generally expected migratory shift downwards in segmentation has occurred – “from Premium to mid-range, mid-range to budget”. However, Croft also suggested that the shift downwards from premium brands could not only be attributed to the recession, since these manufacturers were already in what he termed “an unstable position”. Looking to the new decade, Croft predicted an improvement in the truck tyre market.

Concluding his speech, Croft had a few words for the new S-Marking legislation, and more pointedly the threat of tough enforcement of regulations governing tyre noise. He believes there should be a stronger engagement with safety issues surrounding tyres, prioritising this over noise pollution. “How many people,” he asked rhetorically, “will noisy tyres kill or injure?”