A multiplicity of names: alloy wheels lack brand image

It’s now been about four decades since alloy wheels began winning ground from steel passenger car wheels, and these products really came into their own in the 80s and 90s. Alloy wheels were seen as ‘the best thing since sliced bread’ and sold accordingly. This trend, which started off in the replacement sector, progressed into original equipment; initially only prestige and sport models were equipped with alloys, yet within a few years their use spread to small cars and some entry-level models. The alloy wheel industry boomed and made good money – until a number of thresholds were crossed: Suppliers found themselves with more products than demand justified; fierce competition drove prices down until aftermarket rims were cheaper than their original equipment equivalents. Exquisite accessories became commodities, interchangeable products. Everyday products.

Shortsightedly, alloy wheel suppliers failed to invest in their brands. Advertising was viewed as unnecessary as rims were selling at good and acceptable prices. Because of this, alloy wheel brands remained by and large an unknown quantity to the average motorist. Only BBS and OZ could, thanks to their motorsport involvement, rely on a measure of name recognition in the alloy wheel replacement and original equipment markets.

Aside from a few hardcore fans, scarcely anyone today remembers that ATS, Rial and Fondmetal also participated in Formula One. RH Alurad’s involvement with sporting stars and football teams lacked sustainability. And when Borbet reached the lofty position of OEM supplier, its advertisements disappeared from their formerly prominent spots within business publications.

Other short-term promotional activities, such as ATS’s football stadium presence, advertising in a fringe sport such as Borbet did with luge, or sponsorship in hobbies such as sailing (as did AEZ, for example) – none of this is enough. As a consequence, the rim market isn’t made up of brands, rather a cluster of names.

These are mainly advertised in ‘specialist media’ such as car or tuning magazines, and occasionally in trade journals during peak times for vehicle modifications (typically in spring). This is not enough. The Uniwheels-Group is now utilising motorsport to try and secure a place, alongside BBS and OZ, as the third recognised alloy brand. It may succeed if it persists long enough.

Almost all the other brands, however, are as good as interchangeable and rely upon personal contact or an arrangement with a marketer for their survival. These are not alloy wheel brands as such, rather names that compete in the budget segment. They are caught in a vicious circle: whoever doesn’t generate sufficient profit isn’t able to invest significantly in marketing and advertising.

This also applies to mid-price segment suppliers; such companies, who offer a little more service and eye for fashion trends than the others, are able to charge slightly higher prices than their competition – but this is not how you go about developing a true brand. The sector’s cream is only skimmed from the top by a few premium tuners and by the vehicle manufacturers’ own tuning divisions. Why is this? The alloy wheel industry has simply failed to make itself visible over the past forty or so years.