Online tyre retailer Delticom has become the exclusive German distributor of the Maxima tyre brand. Delticom will distribute this second brand from Slovenian motorcycle tyre manufacturer Savatech through four of its websites, and will also add the Sava brand to its product portfolio. Through its supply of the Maxima brand, Delticom says it hopes to appeal to price-conscious consumers who wish to purchase quality, European-made tyres.
VAT-registered businesses are being urged to get ready now for major changes to VAT return filing and payment coming next April. HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has sent a leaflet to all 1.9 million VAT-registered businesses to alert them to the fact that, from 1 April 2010, those with an annual turnover of £100,000 or more (excluding VAT) will have to file their VAT returns online and pay their VAT electronically. Under the changes, businesses registering for VAT on or after 1 April 2010 will also have to file their return online and pay electronically, whatever their turnover.
Pirelli Tyres and Parts reports its adherence to the Copenhagen Communiqué on Climate Change, an initiative promoted by the University of Cambridge supported organisation the Prince of Wales’s Corporate Leaders’ Group on Climate Change. This communiqué, issued by the business leaders of over 500 global companies, calls for “an ambitious, robust and equitable global deal on climate change that responds credibly to the scale and urgency of the crises facing the world today” and urges the world leaders meeting at December’s United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen to tackle environmental issues with the same level of resolve and coordination as witnessed in the London Summit’s response to the global downturn.
MAM Software Ltd. is advising businesses to begin planning now for the impending change in VAT rate. The VAT rate will return to 17.5 per cent on 1 January 2010, but MAM Software is recommending companies make their preparations before they close for the Christmas break. "Businesses should begin planning as soon as possible" explained Robin Darnell, Director of Support Services at MAM Software. "A lack of preparation will hinder the changeover. Much like Christmas shopping, the later you leave it, the busier it gets and the more stressful it becomes. If businesses plan now, they will have ample time to ask questions and understand the processes involved." MAM Software has published a number of detailed factsheets to help its customers implement the change. These can be accessed online at www.mamsoft.co.uk/vatchange.
A consumer poll indicates that half of all UK drivers put skidding on wet roads as their worst nightmare – and a the huge increase in rainfall in the past few weeks across the country, they have grounds to be concerned. Almost 1,000 motorists took part in the poll CCB fast.MAP undertook in November for the mytyres.co.uk online tyre retail portal, and 55 per cent put skidding out of control as their worst nightmare. Breaking down on the road was the second highest fear and, interestingly, getting a puncture only concerned three per cent of motorists.
European online tyre retailer Delticom has expanded its product family in its home market through the addition of an online shop for bicycle tyres. The German based company has taken over Radlreifen.de, a bicycle tyre shop that has been in existence for two years. Delticom comments that customers – initially in Germany only – will find the “highly diverse choice of quality branded goods” they have come to expect from the company’s existing online tyre portals. As is the case with other websites operated by Delticom, delivery of bicycle tyres is free of charge.
Its seems virtually no-one likes the idea of having continuing with a control tyre in Formula One. As voting for this month’s tyrepress.com Question of the month draws to a close, an overwhelming majority of respondents said “competing tyre manufacturers make for more interesting race.” At the time of writing 93.1 per cent of voters chose this option. Therefore a mere 6.9 per cent support the concept of the world’s most prestigious motor racing series continuing with just one tyre supplier when Bridgestone bows out of this role at the end of the 2010 season.
Last month tyre and aftermarket systems supplier Signal Extraprise opened a European office with the UK and Irish markets the primary focus. Since 1992 Signal Extraprise has developed information systems that support tyre outlets and auto service centres across North America.
In 2006, Signal reportedly set out to create a revolutionary product, targeting all tyre and vehicle-servicing enterprises in the automotive aftermarket. That work culminated in 2009 with the launch of eXceed an offering designed to help service providers to remake their businesses based on the very different marketplace they face now. Instead of, for example, focusing on the mechanics of ordering, quoting, work orders and the like (which are all still important and included), Signal built a technology to help the dealers transform their stores into engines of growth and profitability.
The German based XING business network can be likened to a corporate Facebook, and over eight million members are already using the website to manage their business contacts. The service is very popular in German speaking regions, and to capitalise on this Continental AG has begun a one-year XING trial.
Tire Review reports that venerable British band The Who – well, the two surviving members at least – is being lined up to provide the halftime entertainment for Super Bowl XLIV. Bridgestone Americas are the exclusive sponsor of the Super Bowl halftime.
Mytyres.co.uk – the UK part of Europe’s largest online tyre retailing group Delticom AG – is warning the increasing number of motorists considering part worn tyres that this is an example of false economy and a potentially dangerous decision. Whilst it is difficult to establish the number of part-worn tyres on sale in the UK, research suggests that the number of tyre retailers looking to supply this type of tyre because of the current economic climate is increasing. Tyres & Accessories’ best estimate for the size of this market puts the figure at up to 2 million units.
Michelin will look to “re-establish” its two-wheel motorsport involvement in the UK in 2010, with the manufacturer introducing The Michelin Power Cup having already achieved notable success in France, Italy and Spain with similar race series. The series offers motorcycle racers a welcome Power Pack valued at £700, plus unprecedented amounts of track time and prizes including cash and products. Commenting on the new series, Olivier Gros, head of Michelin’s UK motorcycle department says: “This is a very exciting opportunity for us to re-establish Michelin at the grass-roots of motorcycle racing in the UK. We want the Power Cup to stand out as offering the best value for money for racers both in terms of track time and prizes, and based on the calibre of sponsors we are confident that this will be the case.
Midas, the business-to-business e-commerce platform from Cam Systems, has reached £1 million pounds worth of tyre transactions in a single business day, reflecting what the company believes to be an upward trend in e-commerce in the independent tyre industry.
If you are reading this in India, the opportunity to be more than an “armchair rally driver” beckons. Apollo Tyres, in collaboration with the National Geographic Channel, is producing a seven episode driving adventure series in which motorists throughout the subcontinent have the chance to participate. The programme is titled “Apollo Flight of the Hawkz”, a name that takes its cues from the tyremaker’s Hawkz 4×4 tyre range. Indian nationals over the age of 18 that hold a valid driving licence can register their interest online at www.msnindia.com/natgeohawkz.
The competition to find the UK’s best mechanics, Top Technician 2010 has opened for entries and nominations at the website www.toptechnician.co.uk. The winner will be announced after three competitive assessment stages at Workshop 2010, the industry’s own parts and equipment exhibition, at the NEC Birmingham on 15 April, 2010. S/He will be awarded £2,500 tax-free, alongside thousands of pounds’ worth of prizes and – a press release for the competition states – “priceless publicity for you and your business.” Entrants must complete the initial online test by 8 January, 2010. The prize is sponsored by Blueprint, Comma Oil & Chemicals, Delphi, Euro Car Parts, Lemforder and Motor Codes.
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