(Akron/Tire Review) Goodyear’s Dunlop brand group is looking to leverage podcasting to enhance brand image, awareness and, hopefully, sales. Dunlop’s free podcasts – available on Apple’s iTunes site, podcastalley.com and Yahoo! Podcasts – will feature information about Dunlop’s new Signature tyre line, drifting, information about upcoming retail promotions, and reports from the Dunlop Drivers Cup’s World Finals.
Wincanton is set to operate a newly-built central warehouse in the Slovak town of Senec for tyre manufacturer Goodyear Dunlop. Sources are reporting that Wincanton will manage the distribution of tyres throughout Slovakia, to the Czech Republic and to Hungary.
Goodyear Dunlop Europe has named Mark Brickhill as general manager of its UK operation, based in TyreFort, Birmingham. Brickhill will report to Arthur de Bok, President of Goodyear Dunlop Europe with the appointment taking effect on 1 June. Brickhill replaces Dick Johnson who is retiring after 41 years’ service, the past two as UK general manager.
Viking International is pleased to announce the appointment of Jim Walsby as Business Development Director for division three covering the South. Jim has been with Viking for 10 years in various sales and operations roles before securing his current position where he will be focussing on building and maintaining customer relationships in the Desborough area.
(Akron/Tire Review) Goodyear Dunlop has opened a new distribution centre in Senec, Slovakia, which will serve the central European region. Consequently, the company will close its current warehouses in the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia, according to reports in the Prague daily Monitor.
The ERMC-compiled Europool figures report that the total UK passenger car tyre market amounted to 16,111,696 units in 2005 (down 1.9 per cent on 2004). This compares with a slightly larger drop in the Europe-wide total of 117,242,516 (down 2.9 per cent on 2004). However, due to the way these numbers are compiled (excluding tyres that are not produced within reporting countries) they are perhaps overly optimistic. As industry insiders will be aware, the total market is actually more than 10 per cent larger and has fallen significantly more than one to two per cent in recent years. New figures compiled by market research company GfK put the total market at 18.49 million units, down 13 per cent over 2004 in terms of volume (21.33 million in 2004 and 22.58 million in 2003).
Goodyear Dunlop has announced an increased investment in Actionline – the 24 hour, 365 day service that will ensure TruckForce customers receive the best emergency roadside assistance support in the industry. The opening of the centre coincides with the Commercial Vehicle Show at the NEC, where Goodyear Dunlop is also announcing the signing of what is believed to be Europe’s biggest Truck tyre service contract with TIP trailer services.
Goodyear Dunlop UK is investing in and reorganising its TruckForce network in a move designed to enhance customer service, company executives told Tyres & Accessories today. In England and Wales Goodyear’s truck business will now be served by 16 hub outlets and 45 so-called “spokes.” These company-owned and franchised dealerships will be supported by a wider network of 250-280 TruckForce partners.
Goodyear Dunlop Tyres UK Limited has announced the appointment of Peter Tye as Franchise Development Manager. This new role has been created to spearhead the company’s recently-announced move towards developing franchise opportunities in the vehicle servicing and tyre fitment market. Goodyear Dunlop is investing in its Hi-Q retail chain, and will complement the core of company-owned stores with a relaunched network of franchises, offering the consistent high standards to consumer and fleet customers across the UK. This follows the company’s decision to separate the Hi-Q and Truck Force businesses into two distinct business units in a strategic move to offer focused, dedicated service to satisfy the different needs of both markets.
Apollo Tyres Ltd has formally concluded the process of acquiring Dunlop Tyres International (Pyt) Ltd (Dunlop South Africa) in a £36 million all cash deal. Apollo’s board of directors had approved this acquisition on January 31, 2006, at a board meeting in Mumbai, India. All regulatory approvals in India and South Africa alongside the transfer of shares have already been completed.
For 70 years, the Pneuservice Group has operated as a leader in tyre distribution. As one of the largest import/export distributors in Italy, Pneuservice deals with everything from scooter to passenger car, truck, and earthmover tyres, trading more than two million tyres per year. The group’s offices, depots, and more than 230 franchises are spread throughout Italy and are renowned for fast, efficient and courteous service.
Avon Tyres’ competitive debut in the British GT Championship is being hailed as a resounding success by teams and drivers alike at Oulton Park, Cheshire last weekend. Race winner, Chris Niarchos in his Scuderia Ecosse Ferrari 430, said: “The race was good all round…[the car] ran faultlessly and credit to Avon. The tyres were brilliant….they allowed us to push very early in the race which, historically to be fair, we’ve never been able to do that much.”
In the past three years Goodyear has improved its position amongst the growing number of importers supplying tyres to the Russian market, not to mention the replacement market itself. In 2002 the American manufacturer exported some 960,000 Goodyear, Dunlop, Fulda and Sava branded tyres to Russia. According to the Discovery Research Group based in Moscow, this has already grown to 1.39 million units. At the same time Goodyear’s share of the total number of tyres imported into Russia has increased from 12 per cent in 2002 to 17 per cent now, based on a total import market of 8.2 million units each year.
Goodyear Dunlop has announced the appointment of two new Regional Managers to further strengthen their service provider TruckForce.
A major investment has been made in Goodyear Dunlop’s new truck tyre service provider network for the road transport industry. TruckForce focuses on the commercial vehicle and bus market with planned, preventative tyre maintenance and on-site service with each region having a central TruckForce hub with a network of satellite service points and stock holding locations supporting these.
North Eastern Tyre & Exhausts has recently completed an extension to its main distribution centre’s warehousing and sees itself as a prime example of a company geared up to distribute high and ultra high performance tyres. Following several years of continuous focus on developing its product portfolio the company is now building its reputation as a specialist in this area of the market.
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