The bigger the tyre brand, the more important marketing becomes in order to communicate its values and its worth. With this in mind, the “marketing” tag collates all the latest marketing-related news and analysis into a single place. This reverse-chronological list of thousands of articles is your go-to source of tyre industry, marketing-related news and information.
(Akron/Tire Review) Toyo Tire USA Corp. will raise prices on medium truck, bus and OTR tires, effective 1 April. Commercial (medium truck and bus) tyre prices will increase by 5 per cent, and OTR tyre prices will be bumped up 7 per cent.
(Akron/Tire Review) Hankook Tire Co. announced it has entered into an agreement to supply OE tyres to International Truck and Engine Corp. As part of the agreement, Hankook will provide steer and drive position tyres for International’s CF Series trucks, 4000 Series tractors and IC bus equipment. The tyres to be supplied include: AH06 and AH11 all-position, DH01 drive, AH12 medium distance all-position, Z35A deep tread super traction, and DL01 long haul drive tyres.
Delivery of the tyres to International began in the third and fourth quarters of 2005, Hankook said, adding that it plans to increase its truck tyre production in Korea to meet the requirements of the OE agreement.
(Akron/Tire Review) ArvinMeritor and Pressure Systems International Inc. (PSI) have agreed to a new long-term collaborative arrangement to continue marketing and distributing the Meritor Tire Inflation System (MTIS). The agreement, first established in 1999, includes key global commercial vehicle markets, the companies said.
Credential Environmental Ltd has made another key acquisition, announcing the further integration of its tyre collection and reprocessing businesses into one division under the Credential Automotive banner.
Credential Environmental already owned the Automotive Waste Solutions (AWS) and Waste Tyre Solutions (WTS) recycling businesses, and has now acquired Wednesbury-based Tyre Collection Services (TCS) to complement its growing portfolio of automotive sector recycling businesses bringing the group’s turnover to around £16.5 million in 2006.
Towell Auto Centre, the sole representative for Bridgestone tyres has established a nationwide chain of retail outlets in Oman, branded as ‘Tyre Care Plus.’ According to AMEInfo.com, “these exclusive outlets are redefining tyre retailing.” In a very clear and focussed marketing strategy and keeping in line with their ‘Closer to Customer’ concept, Towell Auto Centre has expanded to thirteen Tyre Care Plus outlets in the country. The first outlet was set up in 1999 at Wadi Kabir, which was known as ‘Bridgestone Tyre Service Centre’. Later a need to brand these exclusive outlets led to the conception of ‘Tyre Care Plus’ in 2005.
(Akron/Tire Review) Groupe Michelin launched a new service product in China called Sui Ni Xing or “Drive Without Worry,” according to China Daily. The product, which includes services such as 24-hour roadside assistance, free tyre repair, towing and warranty programs, will be available in China within the next two years.
Marangoni, has announced the appointment of Greg Graham as Brand Manager. The role will be predominantly UK based, with responsibilities across additional English speaking countries. The appointment follows Marangoni’s new distribution partnership with leading UK wholesaler, Group Tyre (UK) Ltd, and further signals the manufacturer’s intent to aggressively increase its market share of the UK car tyre market.
The alloy wheel aftermarket in the UK has seen a number of changes over the past decade many of which are continuing today. If we go back 10 years, the majority of the wheels sold were sold by tyre dealers. Admittedly, not every tyre dealer felt comfortable selling alloys and many shied away from what they perceived as potential technical problems, but for those who did, it was a nice little earner. The market potential was not lost on the Auto Accessory stores and they began to make inroads.
What was worse from the tyre dealers’ viewpoint was that the Auto Accessory stores more often than not offered a wheel and tyre package, so not only was the tyre dealer losing the wheel sale, but the tyre sale as well. One of the people who supplied information for this article – and I pass on my thanks to those who contributed, whether they asked remain anonymous or not – estimated that nine out of 10 Auto Accessory store sales were wheel and tyre packages, with customers either fitting the wheels themselves, or going to local garages for fitment. Apart from the loss of business for tyre shops, fitting tyres at home offers potential for incorrect fitments, wrong sizes and so on.
Maccess has unveiled a range of automotive World Cup merchandise, which it claims will offer stockists high earning potential throughout Spring and Summer.
The football World Cup 2006 takes place throughout the month of June in Germany and is a fantastic opportunity for UK automotive accessory retailers to offer England football team memorabilia to supporters.
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has received Spartan Chassis Inc.’s “SPARC” Award for commercial tyres installed on Spartan recreational vehicle and fire truck chassis.
Spartan Chassis – part of Spartan Motors Inc. – said the award involves product quality, supply and delivery, engineering and technical support, sales and marketing, and training and warranty support.
Bridgestone has launched a new high-performance 4×4/SUV tyre. According to the manufacturer, the Dueler H/P Sport is the first 4×4 tyre in its portfolio to be derived from Formula One technology.
The tyre has been designed to give driving precision and comfort to the increasing number of powerful sports utility vehicles (SUVs) on UK roads today. With many new SUVs now capable of speeds of more than 140mph, Bridgestone UK’s marketing manager Andy Lane believes it is vital that these vehicles have suitable tyres.
Goodyear Engineered Products has appointed Jim Pecorelli as vice president and general manager of its North America region. Pecorelli had been director of global manufacturing since 2003. Prior to that, he held general manager positions for Goodyear’s industrial power transmission product, hose and conveyor belt businesses over an eight-year span. Pecorelli joined Goodyear in 1982.
“Jim’s expertise and leadership skills strengthen the link between our sales and marketing, manufacturing and supply chain operations to support continued sales growth,’” said president Tim Toppen. ‘”Externally, he knows our customers and understands the markets and channels. Internally, he has led our commercial and manufacturing teams.”
(Akron/Tire Review) With its operations in China growing quickly, Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. brought in an outside expert to head that business. Margaret Sheng was named vice president of Cooper’s China operations and will be based in Shanghai, China.
Most recently, Sheng was regional executive director for Lear Corp. in central and southern China, and she has worked as director, general manager and operations manager for automotive manufacturers in China, Spain, the Philippines and US.
Automechanika Shanghai 2006, which is being held at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre from 30 November to 2 December “will be twice the size of its predecessor in 2004”, say the organisers. 23,000 square metres of space in two halls has been earmarked for the show.
The 2004 event was the show’s debut and the fact that National pavilions from Germany, Singapore and Turkey have already confirmed their participation in this year’s show demonstrates the growing importance of China in the world automotive sector.
Bridgestone’s premium high-performance and touring tyres have received praise from Which?, the UK’s leading consumer watchdog magazine. Which? magazine tested 30 tyres in varying sizes from mainstream manufacturers, with Bridgestone’s Turanza ER300 rated the top tyre in the 14-inch class, and its high-performance Potenza RE050A tyre named as ‘Best buy’ in the 17-inch category.
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