Starco 20% Ahead of Last Year

When it comes to the Reifen 2010 exhibition in June, Starco will not only show itself as a supplier of tyres, tubes and flaps for the aftermarket, but also a wheel supplier and more, company representatives told recently Tyres & Accessories.

The business, which originally developed form an aftermarket operation in Germany has reportedly developed by selling small tyres for internal transportation like wheel barrows, sack truck, turf tyres and more. However, over the years the company has dug deeper into the business with increased agricultural, trailer, caravan and industrial sales. As a result the company reports that it will show “a very selected range of tyres of great importance for our further growth.”

“At the same time we will show Starco as a wheel manufacturer of steel wheels, rims and PP wheels,” said Starco Europe A/S group marketing manager Brian Lorentzen, adding that partners and customers will get a different perspective of the company as being a manufacturer that “develops new wheels and tyres for the growing market”

Overall business is said to be growing “quite good” compared to last year, the Starco Group “20 per cent ahead compared with last year.” This growth is said to have come from being “much more active in the aftermarket,” sales from which represent roughly 45 per cent of total group turnover.

The growth also comes from a new customer base of small OEMs and larger international players like Kuhn. “At the same time we are developing our long time co-operation with existing customers with new product (be it tyres or wheels),” Lorentzen explained.

Starco has a particularly good share of the trailer and caravan market as well being represented in the horticultural machinery segment. Looking forward, future OEM sales growth is expected to be generated from the agricultural business for which the company reports that is can supply the majority of what is need through its ever-increasing range of Starco branded tyres and self produced wheels. The latter are made at the company’s relatively new wheel plant in Croatia, which also goes some way to explaining the company’s emphasis on wheels at this year’s show.

Starco also has plans to develop its aftermarket distribution. Currently the company sells through big tyre chains like Euromaster and point S through to small independent tyres dealer and wholesalers – all of which the company praises for doing “a very good job with the Starco product range.”

Starco to promote RT Agritread and others

In March this year Starco introduced the RT Agritread (Road Trailer) agricultural trailer, slurry tanker, muck spreader tyre. The new product comes in two variants – ML (mud and load) and SL (speed and load). Both products are described as “very high quality” retreaded tyres “rebuilt from carcases of premium tyre brands only.” The ML pattern is suitable for field as well as road usage, while the SL is designed for large proportions of road work, with the ribbed pattern said to provide “a smooth, silent run and longer lifetime.”

All the tyres are produced to the ECE 109 standard, having undergone visual and tactile inspection, shearography and post production inspection and inflation tests.