News articles on the tyre retail business
Bridgestone has taken a minority shareholding in French tyre retailer Pneus à bas prix. Details of the exact stake the tyre maker has acquired or how much it paid have not been released, however Bridgestone states that the new arrangement reinforces its presence in France and complements the company’s First Stop and Speedy retail operations.
Official figures published the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that overall retail sales in the UK rose 5.9 per cent in July 2016 compared to the same period last year.
How do you reach the “most discerning” consumers within a market and become the “undisputed leader” in premium-tier products and services for this group? For Pirelli, the answer is to offer an entire “brand experience,” and the tyre maker is now putting this concept to the test in North America with the opening of its first P Zero World retail outlet.
A.T.U., one of Germany’s largest tyre and car parts retailers, is once again for sale. According to information from market observers, the company is battling serious financial difficulties. US-based private investment firm Centerbridge Partners, which acquired a controlling share in A.T.U Auto-Teile-Unger GmbH & Co. KG from Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) at the end of 2013, has now contracted German restructuring expert Hans-Joachim Ziems. The presence of Ziems doesn’t bode well for A.T.U., which sells around 3.5 million tyres in Germany each year.
At present there are 220 Apollo Vredestein tyre specialists in the UK, and Apollo Vredestein says this number will increase by almost 30 per cent by next year, with 280 centres expected to be operating. This growth in the UK network is occurring as part a wider push to expand the network in Europe.
Bridgestone has announced its plan to acquire 100 per cent of the car service and tyre retail network Speedy France. The manufacturer intends to use the new acquisition to increase its direct access to end-users in France, one of its core European markets, as well as in other markets where Speedy has a presence. The finalisation of the acquisition is subject to approval by the regulatory authorities; once approved, and the transaction is completed, Bridgestone’s French presence will be expanded to more than 800 retail outlets, contributing strongly to its accelerated growth strategy.
The doors have opened on the new ATS Euromaster centre in Altrincham set up following the compulsory acquisition of the company’s Oakfield Street site. The fast fit network invested more than £320,000 in the new 7,500 square foot facility, which is located in the Blue Chip Business Park in Atlantic Street.
GSF Car Parts has upgraded its retail store and counter at its Birmingham head office. The company said the upgrade provides improved access to the company’s extensive range of trade-level quality parts and consumables for local motorists. The company said the move was necessitated by growing queues; the new store area is more than twice the size, enabling staff to provide better, faster service to customers.
Bridgestone may have had the 800 outlet Pep Boys retail network snapped from it hands by Icahn Enterprises, yet the tyre maker is holding onto its growth plans in the USA. Speaking with Japanese financial publication Nikkei, Bridgestone chief executive officer Masaaki Tsuya shared on plans for 20 per cent growth in the tyre maker’s US retail network by 2020.
The merger agreement signed between Bridgestone Retail Operations and The Pep Boys – Manny, Moe & Jack in October 2015 has been terminated, and in its place the US automotive service and retail chain has signed a definitive agreement under which Icahn Enterprises will acquire Pep Boys for US$18.50 per share in cash. Simultaneous with the demise of the Bridgestone agreement, Icahn Enterprises, on behalf of Pep Boys, paid Bridgestone a $39.5 million termination fee
During the closing days of last year, Bridgestone Americas announced that the Bridgestone Retail Operations subsidiary would not counter bid the latest bid from Icahn Enterprises to acquire The Pep Boys – Manny, Moe & Jack. This meant a Happy New Year for Carl Icahn, who now looks set to add the brand and the 800+ Pep Boys outlets to his portfolio.
The Board of Directors at US automotive aftermarket retailer The Pep Boys – Manny, Moe & Jack has declared the US$15.50 per share merger agreement received by Icahn Enterprises superior to the $835 million Bridgestone Retail Operations was prepared to pay, not least because it isn’t subject to due diligence or financing conditions, and it contains a ‘hell or high water’ anti-trust covenant. Pep Boys have now lobbed the ball back into Bridgestone’s court, and the tyre maker has two days to come back with a better offer.
US automotive aftermarket chain The Pep Boys – Manny, Moe & Jack gives word that its Board of Directors have determined the proposal from Icahn Enterprises L.P. to acquire Pep Boys for US$15.50 per share in cash would be expected to result in a “Superior Proposal” (as defined in the company’s agreement and plan of merger with Bridgestone Retail Operations, LLC). This opinion was reached after consultation with the company’s independent legal and financial advisors, however at this stage Pep Boys are still on track to take up the Bridgestone share offer.
Stoke-on-Trent tyre supplier and fitting centre, Best Tyres, has gone live with CAM’s digital tablet-driven work exchange for truck, bus and van tyres. The open platform allows service providers such as Best Tyres to gain from the digital work exchange even if they are not existing customers of CAM – the company currently uses another software system.
The Independent Garage Association’s (IGA) Trust My Garage (TMG) has described a “flurry of interest” following the announcement that it received final approval from The Chartered Trading Standards Institute (CTSI).
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