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Axle Group See Profits Double on Flat Sales

Axle Group Holdings Ltd, which owns National Tyres and Autocare, has reported that profits nearly doubled to £5.8 million in the financial year to 31 December 2009, despite turnover remaining flat at £153.1 million. The latest accounts to be filed show that much of the company’s improved profitability came through £3.6 million worth of cuts in “administrative expenses” to £53.6 million, while distribution costs fell £400,000 to £6 million in the year. However, according to reports in Crain’s Manchester Business, a 106-person drop in staff count to 1,238 during the year, reduced the wage bill by £2 million to £26 million. However, in addition to reduced head count there is also evidence of thriftiness in the boardroom. The accounts, which inlcude the Viking tyre wholesale subsidiary, show the company's highest paid director, which Crain’s speculates is Revie, earned £763,907, roughly a third of the £2.1 million the company’s highest paid director received the previous year. Total boardroom pay for the four directors fell sharply as well, down £2.65 million to £1.4 million from £4.05 million the year before. The company's net asset value reportedly rose to £55 million, from £49 million the previous year.

14th May 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Check Internet Links Warns NTDA

Used properly, the Internet can be a powerful and valuable marketing tool. Unfortunately, in the wrong hands, it can be used to adversely affect your business. It recently came to the attention of the NTDA that a wholesaler of tyres on the Internet had downloaded details of all NTDA members and, customers who logged on to certain retailers' websites were being diverted to the wholesaler's site.

It may sound a trivial offence, but it is one which is being taken increasingly seriously by courts. Indeed, in a recent case, a disgruntled estate agent purchased the ".com" version of his former employers' domain name (the employers were using the ".co.uk" address) and visitors to the site were diverted to a hardcore porn site. The case went to court and the employee was found guilty of passing off and copyright infringement and had to pay costs of £15,000.

In this instance, the NTDA warned members that this was happening and e-mailed the following letter to members:

11th May 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Stapletons ‘Continues to Flourish’

Stapleton’s Tyre Services reports that over the past 12 months the company has “continued to flourish.” The wholesaler, which occupies a leading position in the UK market, has more than 70 years experience in passenger car tyre distribution. It distributes to both the specialist tyre retail trade and the car dealership sector. Stocking tyres from all major manufacturers, including Bridgestone, Continental, Dunlop, Goodyear, Michelin and Pirelli, Stapletons offer a full range of tyres from budget to premium, including exclusive and private brands: Nexen, Primewell, Capitol, Prestivo and Matador. Primewell, produced by Giti -the largest tyremaker in China, is the latest addition to the company’s range.

10th May 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Micheldever Opens Middlesex Logistics Centre

Micheldever Tyres Services (MTS) has opened a new distribution centre in Middlesex, North West London. The new site situated in Greenford, Middlesex, will have a storage capacity of over 100,000 tyres, which will according to the company “carry a huge range of patterns and sizes of tyres in all brands to ensure maximum possible availability for the increasingly important same day delivery service.”

MTS wholesale director Alan Baldwin described the opening of the company’s latest warehouse as “Micheldever’s greatest leap forward in customer service since we opened our Halifax warehouse,” adding:

10th May 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

BKT Appoints Kirkby Tyres as Official Distributor

After many years of association with the Alliance and Double Coin brands, Kirkby Tyres reports that the company is “delighted to welcome BKT into the family for OE and aftermarket replacement.” With the head office on a five acre site next to John Lennon airport in Liverpool, offices in Scotland, Ireland and China, the 62 year old Kirkby Tyres recently embarked on an expansion programme. As a result the company has undergone recruitment and organisational changes in several all areas, from marketing to technical support.

One such appointment is that of Ilan Goldstone who has taken on the role of Alliance and Double Coin brand manager. A BSc Hons management graduate, he reportedly has extensive experience in the automotive industry. “As a company I believe we are in one of the best positions in the market. With Alliance gradually moving production to India it’s exciting times, the range will be bigger and better and of course, even more competitive.”

4th May 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

NDI to Launch New Nordexx Private Brand

Leading Danish tyre wholesale operation, Nordisk Daek Import A-S (NDI), has announced plans to launch a new private brand called Nordexx at the Reifen 2010 exhibition. Talking to Tyres & Accessories, NDI export manager Carsten Andersen explained that the new product range, which is aimed at the passenger car and van markets, will initially be available in 40 popular 13 to 18-inch summer sizes and 20 more aimed at the winter tyre market.

4th May 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

TGI to Promote New Cosmo TBR Range

After a challenging 2009, as it was for most all of the industry, this year US-based wholesale tyre distribution operation, Tire Group International, Inc (TGI) is reportedly increased year-on-year sales and plans to market its new Cosmo brand truck and bus radial range at the Reifen show.

“2009 was a tough year in the industry. We faced many challenges, from the global shortage of supply, financial crisis, and new duties on Chinese imports to the US. At TGI we are proud to say that through this maelstrom, we continued to grow stronger. The company grew 6.5 per cent from 2008 to 2009, which is quite an accomplishment with the aforementioned challenges,” chief operating officer Joaquin Gonzalez Jr. told Tyres & Accessories.

30th April 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

GITI Signs Exclusive Distribution Agreement with Micheldever

GITI Tire group of companies (that is GITI Tire and Indonesian manufacturing arm PT Gajah Tunggal Tbk) have appointed Micheldever Tyre Services as exclusive PCR, LTR and 4×4 distributor for the company’s GT Radial and Runway Enduro tyre brands in the UK and Republic of Ireland. Previously GT Radial and Runway Enduro were distributed by Compass Group.

According to the companies, the agreement was completed recently at a signing ceremony held at the head office of Micheldever Tyre Services, attended by Micheldever CEO Paul Fox, GITI Tire (UK) Ltd general manager Richard Lyons and Tim Chesney managing director of Compass Group. Tim Chesney commented: “We have worked very closely and successfully over many years with the GITI Group; to market and promote the two brands. We believe, for the mutual benefit of all parties, it is now time to hand the baton to Micheldever Tyre Services, a long term customer of Compass Group and the leading tyre distribution and retail company in the UK.”

21st April 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Micheldever’s Up For Sale, But Who’s Buying?

When you consider that they paid £85 million for Micheldever Tyre Services (MTS) in 2006, it is no surprise that equity house Graphite Capital is willing to sell the company now it is in the position to command a £200 million price tag. Back then Graphite were cast as the backers for a management buy-in/buy-out that kept the independent tyre wholesaler in independent hands and out of the corporate grasp of ‘big business.’ Now it seems that the motivation to sell the UK’s largest single tyre wholesaler (along with its 50 Protyre retail depots) emanates primarily from the same equity house that kept it in the hands of its managers four years ago.

Micheldever Tyre Services is said to have started out in a shed in 1972. Over the next 34 years Tony Todd grew the company into a market leading independent wholesaler with a loyal customer base. By the time he sold it in 2006, MTS had become a truly multi-million pound business, with the staff count reaching over 550 people, sales reaching £148 million annually and pre-tax profits amounting to £5 million a year. Since then turnover and staff levels have almost doubled to £275 million and 900 people in 2009, with MTS particularly benefitting from its exclusive distribution of some leading upper mid-range products during the recession.

19th April 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Kings Road Tyres Lead British Contingent at Essen

Tyre wholesale operation Kings Road Tyres has once again booked a significant sized stand at the world’s leading tyre exhibition. The company reports that it has always recognised the benefit of trade exhibitions and events and has attended Essen on a regular basis, group MD Peter Gaster explained why:

“We place great importance in building personal relationships with our customers and the best way of doing that is by meeting them in person and understanding their needs. It’s never been easier to communicate efficiently with advances in business technology, but there is still no substitute for face-to-face contact. That’s why our sales staff from around the UK and Ireland will be involved throughout the exhibition, giving them and our customers a chance to meet.”

13th April 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Micheldever Put Up for Sale, Wholesaler Could Reach Over £200 million

The UK’s largest tyre wholesaler Micheldever Tyre Services (MTS) could be about to change hands for over £200 million, more than twice the price paid for the company when it was sold in an equity-backed management buyout for £85 million in 2006. According to reports published in the 11 April issue of the Sunday Times, the sale would include 50 Protyre depots – Micheldever’s growing retail chain. MTS an annual turnover of £275 million, a roughly 20 per cent market share and employs almost 900 people.

13th April 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Micheldever Adds General Brand Car Line to 4×4 Range

Leading wholesaler Micheldever Tyre Services (MTS) has added the Continental produced General Tire brand’s car range to its existing General 4×4 offering. The addition of the General car range to MTS’s private/exclusive brand portfolio follows the development of General’s 4×4 range into “the UK market’s fastest growing replacement 4×4 brand,” according to Southam Tyres (MTS’s specialist 4×4 wing). According to the company, MTS recently launched the stunning range of General car and van tyres as an exclusive product for tyre retailers in need of a high quality, high margin retail tyre.

8th April 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Top Fleet Award for Goodyear

Goodyear has won the Environmental Award at the prestigious 2010 Fleet News Awards in London. The award’s judges praised the fuel saving qualities of Goodyear’s EfficientGrip tyre and recognised the successful green programmes introduced by the firm at the event held on Wednesday 17 March.

Lisa Faulkner, fleet manager for Goodyear, said: “We are delighted to win this award in recognition of the benefits delivered by EfficientGrip. This is something that fleet managers have been quick to realise by choosing a tyre that offers exceptional fuel efficiency without the need to compromise on safety. The award also underlines our company-wide commitment to the environment.”

19th March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Delticom Launches US Wholesaler Site

Delticom North America, the US subsidiary of Europe’s largest online tyre retailer, has launched www.tires123.com, an online store targeting tyre retailers and service centres. The dealer-only website is the wholesale version of sister site tires-easy.com, a consumer site Delticom states is “known for its low prices for consumers.”

18th March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Demand for Private Brands Growing, Deldo Reports

Belgian wholesaler Deldo Autobanden is one of the largest operators in Europe, and amongst the more than 25 brands stocked at the company’s 60,000 square metre warehouse in Antwerp are four exclusive and two private brands – Fortuna and Minerva. The labels are aimed at the budget segment, an area where Deldo reports seeing significant growth during the last 12 months. In an interview with Tyres & Accessories, Deldo marketing manager Rutger Veerman stated the company has “noticed a growing demand in the European replacement market. Acceptance of Chinese products is growing, and we are benefitting from this.”

2nd March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors