Crypto bubble prompts 9.2% jump in UK luxury car ownership
Ownership of Aston Martin, Rolls Royce, Maserati, Bentley and Porsche cars has increased 9.2 per cent in the UK in the past year, up from 221,124 in 2020 to 241,391 in 2021. Data from national accountancy group UHY Hacker Young shows that Porsche remains the most popular luxury brand with 173,523 vehicles on the road and the brand experiencing a 10 per cent increase on the total of 157,916 in 2020. Ownership of Maseratis is growing the quickest, with 10.3 per cent more on UK roads, from 10,078 in 2020, to 11,113 in 2021.
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Point S’s strategy of future-proofing tyre retail – two businesses’ point-of-view
Following the news that Point S has broken through the 300-branch mark in terms of its UK tyre retail growth, Tyres & Accessories engaged with the experience of two of the networks members. Here, Point S Tyre & Autocare Network members Gary Benwell and Russell Parker discuss how the networks strategy of future-proofing tyre retail has boosted the profitability of their businesses.
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MTS: investment in e-commerce solutions reaps rewards for tyre retailers
Micheldever Tyre Services (MTS) reports that it is continuing to invest in e-commerce solutions that benefit their tyre retailer network, with its dedicated tyre selling website, TyreClick, providing a “key platform for online success”. MTS investments include development of the TyreClick site and investment in third-party expertise, such as Strategic Q, to help enhance Search Engine Optimisation (SEO).
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Michelin pauses production at Stoke-on-Trent tyre retreading plant
Michelin is pausing some of its retreaded tyre production for a week in October and over the Christmas period. According to the company, Michelin is “adjusting production within existing flexibility agreements due to volatile trading conditions”. However, there is no question of whether the action is related to a potential closure of the operation. Rather, company representatives were explicit: “there is no plan to close the Stoke plant”.
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‘Part of Melksham DNA for more than century’ – local leaders react to Cooper Tire factory closure
Wiltshire politicians and Unite union representatives have reacted to the news that Cooper Tire plans to end tyre production at its Melksham plant by the end of 2023. Speaking to local news source, the Wiltshire Gazette & Herald, Michelle Donelan, MP for Chippenham, offered her support to workers, while Melksham’s mayor emphasised the longevity and importance of the manufacturing site in the town’s history. With the plant’s 350-strong workforce represented by Unite, union leader Tony Hulbert railed against the timing of the announcement, given the UK’s spiralling cost-of-living crisis.
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Cambrian Tyres appointed exclusive importer of Goodyear for UK and Ireland
On 3 October, Cambrian Tyres announced that it has been appointed as the exclusive importer of Goodyear Bicycle Tires for the UK and Ireland. Already a top-three global tyre company, Goodyear has been establishing itself as a leading brand within the global bicycle tyre segment since 2018 via a licensing agreement with Rubber Kinetics. Rubber Kinetics produce all Goodyear bicycle tyres at their “bicycle tyre specific research, development, and production centre in Taiwan”.
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Transaid cycle challenge raises £205,000
A team of 40 riders drawn from the transport and logistics industry have completed a 505km cycle challenge across southern Malawi in soaring temperatures, pedalling through the spectacular Liwonde National Park to raise more than £205,000 towards Transaid’s projects in sub-Saharan Africa. The remarkable sum of money adds to the £25,000 raised by the 16 riders who took on Hadrian’s Cycleway over two days in September. Combined, the non-restricted funds will be used by Transaid to focus on improving road safety and increasing access to healthcare in rural communities.
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Half of older drivers will cut car use due to cost-of-living crisis
The cost-of-living crisis is forcing half of older drivers to make fewer journeys, according to a survey by disability motoring website MotaClarity. The poll of more than 1,000 drivers aged 50 and over found that 54 per cent were considering placing self-imposed limits on their driving in order to save cash in the face of mounting household expenses. With miles driven going down – in this particular demographic at least – should the data be proved to reflect reality, tyre consumption will also drop.
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UK AFCAR calls for effective implementation of ‘positive’ block exemption proposals
The UK Alliance for the Freedom of Car Repair (UK AFCAR) has welcomed the new Motor Vehicle Block Exemption Order (MV-BEO) proposals but has called for effective implementation of the proposals. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is recommending to the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), Jacob Rees-Mogg, that the retained Motor Vehicle Block Exemption Regulations (MV-BER) should be replaced by a MV-BEO, which should remain in place until 31 May 2029.
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Oak Tyres plans for high-demand winter season
With the winter months approaching and the cost-of-living challenge affecting many across the UK, the next few months are vital represent an important part of the year, Oak Tyres tells Tyres & Accessories. The wholesaler, part of Grouptyre, has been planning since early 2022 to strengthen its position. Oak Tyres’ winter tyre supply chain planning starts in February each year, with production running through the summer. This means that the brand has stock arriving from Autumn onwards for the winter months. Oak says it is anticipating “unprecedented demand” for sister tyre brand, Davanti, “due to its value proposition,” an eventuality it has prepared for.
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Klarius wins Logistics Excellence Award 2022
Klarius has won the NAA Logistics Excellence Award presented by DHL Supply, in recognition of its market-leading nationwide next morning delivery service. The aftermarket exhaust manufacturer was commended for its overall performance, logistical innovation and capacity to deliver excellence.
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Randstad joins IAAF
Automotive consumables supplier and distributor of the TerraClean brand, Randstad, has become a supplier member of the Independent Automotive Aftermarket Federation (IAAF). Randstad started in 1975 and has grown to become one of the UK’s largest automotive suppliers of parts and consumables such as spark plugs, wiper blades and vehicle bulbs to independent garages throughout the UK.
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Vipal and Vaculug promote “Brazilian Day”
Vipal and one of its “most solid partners in Europe”, Vaculug celebrated the success of their partnership on 10 September by holding a Brazilian Day. The festive event promoted integration between Vaculug and the Vipal Rubber commercial team and was held at the headquarters of Harrowby United Football Club, in Grantham. The meeting also commemorated the bicentennial of Brazils independence, celebrated on 7 September. During the festivity, participants enjoyed a barbecue and played football, pool, and darts. Everyone was given a t-shirt prepared especially for the event in the colours of the Brazilian national flag.
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Cooper begins consultation on plans to close Melksham factory by end of 2023
The Cooper Tire & Rubber Company Europe plans to close its UK tyre manufacturing plant in Melksham, Wiltshire by the end of 2023. The company will now begin a consultation process on the proposed closure involving 350 Cooper employees and the relevant employee representative bodies. Previous cutbacks at Cooper’s Melksham plant, one of the few new tyre producers remaining in the UK, were announced in 2018. Car and SUV tyre manufacturing were moved to newer facilities in the company’s manufacturing footprint, such as its plant in Serbia. The remaining functions of the site were the production of motorsport and motorcycle tyres, as well as the company’s Europe headquarters and Technical Center. The merger of Cooper and its new parent company The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company was finalised in June 2021 following the announcement of its acquisition in February. Goodyear approved a plan to streamline its global administrative structure in the second quarter of 2022.
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Stapleton’s presents Triangle tyres distribution deal to dealers at PalmerSport event
In September, Stapleton’s Tyre Services became the exclusive Great Britain distributor of Triangle passenger car and van tyres. The deal, which has been in the making for the last couple of years, will build on the strengthening relationship between Triangle Tyre and the UK’s largest tyre wholesaler. It was finalised after comprehensive testing of the Triangle range by Stapleton’s and its ultimate parent company Itochu. In recent years, the company has become the largest distributor of Triangle products in Europe. Stapleton’s states that Triangle is a “strong strategic fit in the economy segment” of its portfolio. It will make the brand available to “all customers in every channel.” Unveiling the deal, Stapleton’s hosted key dealer customers and European representatives of Triangle at PalmerSport at the Bedford Autodrome. Tyres & Accessories also attended the event, taking the opportunity to speak to Stapleton’s managing director Andy Fern, who took the reigns in the first quarter of 2020 just before the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted business as usual, about the new deal and the evolution of the Stapleton’s business under his leadership.
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