Traxx Tyres: new wholesaler builds million tyre firm in under a year

Within four weeks of the company’s launch, Traxx Tyres secured new premises 15 minutes from London for the business’ head office. Walk in through the shining polished glass doors and you are greeted by the smell of new carpets and freshly unwrapped furniture. However, the first thing you notice is that this is not simply the administration department of a regional wholesaler, but rather the suite of ground floor offices and board rooms tell you that this operation is set up to be the nerve centre of a business with national aspirations. With the company having such impressive aspirations, Tyres & Accessories visited the Bracknell headquarters (Maxx House) to find out more about Traxx’s short history, recent achievements and plan for the future.

Don’t worry if you haven’t yet heard of Traxx Tyres, until less than a year ago the company literally didn’t exist. That said, the said the firm made an unmissable entrance into the market with the acquisition of Broadway in November 2010, which had gone into administration just a couple of weeks before.

Back then Traxx Tyres described itself as a “cash rich wholesale tyre operation” and the new company distanced itself from the kind of errors that befell the previous owners by stating that it did not “require bank support for [the] launch” – something that it turns out is both a business and an ethical distinctive of the new board.

Although new to the UK tyre business, Traxx’s directors report that they have the benefit of “many years experience from their global partners” and have gained “huge knowledge from the Broadway acquisition”. What this means is that the entire board is made up of with business owners that have expertise in areas relating to the manufacture, wholesale and distribution of products ranging from envelopes to brake fluid. There is some specific automotive industry experience, one director runs a company which supplies high performance brake and clutch fluids to Formula 1, Nascar and Rally teams; a number of OEMs; and even NATO military vehicles.

In addition the company claims “in-depth market knowledge through strong links with successful Australian company Tyremax” which wholesales tyres down under. The Tyremax strategy, adopted by Traxx, is said to have proved “extremely successful” in a number of countries through the world, including Australia, new Zealand, America and parts of Europe. As a result certain suppliers are reported to have commented that they have found Traxx approach “refreshing.”

Aiming to be the UK’s top tyre wholesaler

According to the Traxx mission statement, the company is “committed to providing their customers with the quality of tyres they want, when they want them and at a price which meets their business needs…” And in order to do this company takes its own approach: “At Traxx we believe that the way forward is to satisfy customer requirements by sourcing and supplying tyres from a select number of ethical and responsible suppliers who manufacture to the highest standards and with whom we can forge close working relationships….The key values which run through our businesses are integrity, decency and fairness; and these values underline all our stakeholder relationships – with customers, staff and suppliers alike.”

Over time Traxx aims to establish a partnerships with what it describes as “a small number of premium and mid-range brands” with the goal for forging “particularly close” relationships of which developing brand awareness and perception are seen as central facets. Apart from the obvious fact that Traxx has opened accounts with all the leading premium tyre suppliers – this is much is visible from a brief walk through the warehouse – one example of this business philosophy in action is manifested in the presence of Lassa tyres in the warehouse. Produced in Turkey by the Bridgestone/Sabanci joint venture Brisa, Lassa tyres are only distributed through a select number of partners each with territorial exclusivity. It is clear that Traxx has not been wasting any time in its bid to develop a premium and mid-range portfolio of its own, which currently includes Bridgestone, Continental, Dunlop, Firestone, Goodyear, Lassa, Michelin and Pirelli.

Something that will have appealed to the premium brands is the fact that Traxx marketing strategy is almost exclusively premium and mid-range centric. The reason? “Too many people are giving away tyres.” And Traxx, for its part, is “looking to bring stability back into the tyre business.”

Former Broadway business and staff transferred to Bracknell

For those of you who were wondering about the fact that T&A toured the Traxx operation in Bracknell and not the High Wycombe home of Broadway, here’s an explanation. At the time of acquisition of the company back in November, Traxx Tyres pledged “complete commitment to the Broadway Tyres customer base, utilising its High Wycombe and Watford facilities to the full” while also signalling its intent to “expand into other regions.” And this is what has been done. But since these statements were made Traxx took the decision to move its central operation from High Wycombe to Bracknell just a few miles away. Staff were offered a loyalty bonus for moving too and now 95 per cent of the former High Wycombe Broadway workforce is now employed at Maxx House.

In the interim the firm reports that it has spent over £350,000 creating what it calls a “cutting edge environment” for its employees and meeting and office facilities for the board alongside its 50,000 square foot Bracknell warehouse with room for over 100,000 tyres. Although the company’s headquarters are located in Bracknell, Traxx has its sights firmly set on national coverage. Just nine months into the firm’s existence, company representatives told Tyres & Accessories that Traxx’s delivery routes already cover 65 per cent of the country.

Nearing national coverage

But the expansion is far from over. In addition to the either upgraded or transferred Broadway locations of Bracknell, Watford and Harlow, Traxx has indentified key sites across the UK for developing tyre distribution centres and reaching its growing customer base. One recent example of this is the significant sized centre in Airdree, Scotland. This is already in the process of stocking up and will be fully operational by August, while a smaller satellite warehouse in Maidstone is getting operations underway as well.

The next phase will see the company open warehouses new the largest non-London population centres – namely Birmingham and Manchester. Sites have already been selected and could be operational in the next three months. A south west regional branch in the vicinity of Exeter is similarly primed. Altogether the company has plans for up to 11 regional warehouses in its initial 24 month plan (including potential sites in Northern Ireland and Eire), but the general speed of expansion is apparently going so much faster than expected that these goals could be achieved in half that time. Initially Traxx aimed to achieve national distribution within two years “in reality we will achieve it within 12 months” T&A was told during its tour of Maxx House.

When it comes to further expansion growth by acquisition has not been ruled out, but it looks more likely that the company ended the purchasing phase when it bought Broadway. Instead, now that the core Traxx business is established, the focus is switching to generating more sales. Currently the company is on-track for selling a million tyres, but the already established dealership division seeks to employ the firm’s “creativity, maturity and professionalism” in dominating this sector and building further from here.