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HiQ Unveils Franchisees Following Strategic Growth Decision

Goodyear Dunlop’s decision to pursue a franchising programme for a number of HiQ servicing outlets met with so much interest from bidders that the company opted to extend the scheme to all its HiQ sites, split into 15 regional zones. Following this decision, Neil Burrows – the company’s retail director – left the company, while former HiQ retail director, Chris Kisby, successfully bid for the South Midlands, East Midlands and West Midlands zones. The company also announced that St Austell tyre trade expert, Justin Roberton would become the franchise-owner of three fast fit centres in Cornwall.

25th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Marshal Offer Comprehensive Truck Range

Fresh from the launch of its new website, Marshal is keen to ramp up its truck tyre operation, using a variety of customer-friendly measures.

To make selection easier for customers and end users, a clear naming system has been adopted for all new tyres in the range. This includes an indication of the application, for example L for long haul, R for regional, M for mixed service etc. The position is also given by a letter such as S for steer, T for trailer and A for all-position. Finally a two digit number (01, 02 and so on) shows the series.

In addition to the improvements to retail operations, Marshal is confident that its range can cater to the needs of a wide range of customers. To meet the demands of long-distance highway use at constant high speed, Marshal’s long haul range delivers good stability and handling and long original tread life, while offering a smooth ride and minimising uneven wear. The regional range combines excellent handling and ride comfort with the need for good traction and long tread life.

22nd September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Bridgestone Plans to Introduce New Fuel-Efficient Tyres Abroad

(Bloomberg) Bridgestone Corp. plans to sell a new fuel-efficient tyre outside Japan to lure drivers trying to cut gasoline costs. Bridgestone will sell its Ecopia line of tyres, which improve a car’s fuel economy by as much as 5%, in markets including North America and Europe following a domestic launch in April this year, Takashi Tomioka, director of Bridgestone’s tyre products strategy division, said in an interview.

Gasoline prices have jumped 27 per cent in the U.S. this year, cutting demand for new cars. Tokyo-based Bridgestone forecasts demand for replacement tyres will be unchanged and consumers will be willing to pay higher prices for fuel-efficiency. “The sales volume on these tyres is very small,” said Kunihiro Matsumoto, senior analyst at UBS AG in Tokyo. “But it’s positioned as a high-performance tyre and priced to contribute to earnings.” (Tire Review/Akron)

18th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Plants Out of Action Following Hurricane Ike

Goodyear doesn’t like Ike. The hurricane that struck the Texas, US coastline on September 13 has affected the company’s operations in the area, with operations at three of its petrochemical plants suspended. About 1,000 employees have been unable to perform their duties as a result.

17th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Auto4 Appoints Mark Prince UK Sales Manager

Tyre consumables supplier Auto4 has announced the appointment of Mark Prince as UK sales manager, effective from September 1, 2008. Previously with Harvie Prema, Prince brings with him a diversity of skills plus tyre industry knowledge and experience from a career spanning more than 23 years, and Auto4 expresses confidence that his addition to the company will further its already extensive portfolio of capabilities.

15th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

HiQ to Build on First Year as BTCC Sponsor

As its first season as title sponsor draws to a close (the last race is on 21 September), HiQ is promising to build on its exciting three-year sponsorship of the British Touring Car Championship. According to the company, the sports bosses have praise the way in which HiQ have handled the image and representatives of the tyre retail chain say they will be coming back with even more initiatives when the 2009 campaign begins in April.

HiQ has been keen to interact with as many fans as possible during the season, in order to maximize its sponsorship of the sporting extravaganza. More than 2,000 supporters have made the most of the company’s fans’ forum events, which have taken place in towns around the UK before each race, featuring some of the stars of the circuits.

15th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

25 Per Cent of Goodyear Dalian Tire on Sale

Dalian Bingshan Group is gearing up to sell its 25 per cent of Goodyear Dalian Tire to the public for 311.46 million yuan (25.47 million pounds sterling). The validity of the announcement will expire on 15 September, so find your chequebooks quickly, folks.

At present assets in Goodyear Dalian total 2.06 billion yuan (168 million GBP), though 813 million yuan (66 million GBP are current liabilities, while net assets sit at 1.25 billion yuan (102 million GBP).

12th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Harris Brothers Tyres Raises £800 for Charity

Harris Brothers Tyres raised £800 for the Paul Sartori Foundation, a local charity, at the Pembrokeshire County Show. The three days of events raised a total of £814 for the charity, which provides palliative care for patients with life-limiting conditions, both from the hospice based in Haverfordwest and for patients at home.

Leighton Walker, director of Harris Brothers Tyres, commented: “Despite the British weather, the event was a huge success. Thousands of visitors came along to the stand to see the Formula One car and give the simulator a go, helping us to raise a fantastic amount for charity. Working within Bridgestone’s First Stop group, we are able to do more to give that little bit extra to our customers and also to local charities such as the Paul Sartori Foundation.”

8th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Bridgestone UK Receives Award from European CEO

Bridgestone UK has received a special award from the global tyre manufacturer’s new European CEO Toru Tsuda for its outstanding business performance in the first half of 2008. Bridgestone, which is based in Warwick, continues to focus its efforts in working with independent tyre retailers and its well established Truck Point programme to strengthen its brand and market share aspirations.

With 20 Bridgestone sales companies in Europe, the CEO award is presented to the company that excels in all areas of business improvement, focusing specifically on increases in like-for-like sales, market share, category mix and profitability.

8th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Apollo to Open Signature Stores

Apollo is to follow car manufacturers BMW and Fiat by opening its own signature stores to display and sell its products within India. The decision can be seen equally as a commercial and a prestige move. While the stores – which will be split between Apollo Radial World (ARW) stores for passenger cars and Apollo Trust (AT) for commercial customers – will open across the country, the ability to promote solely Apollo products through eleven flagship ARWs – the first of which has opened in Patiala – is undoubtedly appealing. This fiscal year will see also see 100 AT stores open nationwide, should the company’s plans be fulfilled.

4th September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Retail Director Leaves Goodyear Dunlop

Goodyear Dunlop Tyres UK has announced that retail director Neil Burrows has left the company. The departure comes following the company’s decision to pursue a franchise-based strategy for the expansion of its HiQ retail business.

In March this year Goodyear Dunlop announced growth plans for HiQ via an “area zone” Accelerated Franchise Programme, adding that Burrows was to lead a management buyout bid covering all of the company’s owned stores. The bid process was significantly over-subscribed and, after careful consideration of all offers, the company announced that they had chosen to accelerate the growth of the nationwide vehicle servicing network through franchising rather than via management buyout.

3rd September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Central Tyre Gives Away Sensor Valve Caps

Central Tyre depots in the UK are offering tyre valve caps that instantly tell drivers whether tyres are the correct pressure as part of a new road safety campaign. Throughout September and October Central Tyre is giving a set of four K-Pressure Optic Sensors to all customers purchasing any two Pirelli tyres. They normally retail at £37.60. The K-Pressure Optic Sensor valve caps are designed by Pirelli.

They are the only warning caps on the market that automatically close the valve immediately when a pressure drop is detected. Individual sets are ready calibrated to pre-set pressures, printed on the caps, and they are designed to compensate for increases in tyre pressure over the course of a journey.

3rd September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Tyresure Reduces TPMS Price

Tyresure has reduced the price of its “money saving tyre pressure monitoring systems,” which are designed to improve safety and reduce fuel use. The recommended retail price of the unit is now £179.99. According to the company, sales have soared since the product’s UK launch earlier this year. A company statement announcing the price decrease explained that “thousands of motorists are now driving with correctly inflated tyres” as a result of using the system.

2nd September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Tony Neill New Axle Group CEO

Axle Group has promoted Tony Neill to the position of chief executive officer for the group which includes, National Tyres and Autocare, and sister companies, National Fleet and Viking International. Neill will assume overall responsibility for the strategic direction of all group trading companies. Neill has been with the company for 25 years, previously in the position of CEO for National Tyres and Autocare, before which he was retail director for a number of years. Alan Revie, Axle Group Chairman, commented: “I am delighted to congratulate Tony on his new role. Tony’s vision and depth of experience will be fundamental in driving the company forward.”

2nd September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Retail Closures Viewed Positively, Comment DB Analysts

A Deutsche Bank analyst report indicates that Goodyear’s decision to close 92 “underperforming” retail locations in the US is a good thing. “Overall, we view this announcement positively,” says the report, “as it demonstrates additional cost savings as GT (Goodyear).” The closure of the retail stores is expected to result in after-tax charges of US$40 million and generate savings of $9 million per annum. This level of savings, says Deutsche Bank, could potentially add $0.03 to $0.04 to its earning estimate.

2nd September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors