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Tyre Wars: An overview of the wholesale tyre conflict

The tyre trade has been buying and selling tyres for over 100 years. One might have imagined that it would have settled on a profitable, manageable and structured method of distributing car tyres from manufacturer or importer to retailer by now. However, it hasn’t and one suspects it never will.

Way back in the mists of time life was simpler. The tyre manufacturers supplied their tyres to the vehicle manufacturers and tyres were supplied at the local garages. The number of brands available was limited and people tended to buy what they wanted at the garage displaying their brand’s logo.

In the 1960’s tyre manufacturers would have supply arrangements with local dealers who would agree to take their brand of tyres and then redistribute to local tyre fitters, all at fixed retail prices of course. Then the manufacturers decided that they could deliver, and they cut out the local dealer, they set up their own logistics operations and offered to deliver tyres to anyone who would buy them. The result was chaos.

In the meantime, the network of local tyre wholesalers in the UK was developing. The manufacturers realised that they could not survive delivering just their own brands so they delved into the market with their own tyre wholesale operations.

At the same time there had been the development of a number of regional tyre wholesalers. Of which Stapleton’s had become a national player.The co-operation of strong regional wholesalers across the UK culminated in the establishment of Group Tyre.

Whilst Stapleton’s and Group Tyre dug in for a long war a third player entered the fray. Hampshire-based Micheldever, the sleeping giant, decided to make some moves to expand out of its Southern base. It first bought Southam Tyres, then opened a warehouse at Chepstow, and now Halifax with rumours of interests in the North East being rife. Battle was joined.

To listen to the larger operators it would be fair to presume that no independent had any involvement in the fleet market or the franchised dealer sector. However the independent trader is well aware of the situation and whilst some may be content to work on ever diminishing markets, others may be taking another view of the situation.

17th November 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

The Sleeping Giant Stirs

The Micheldever wholesale operation has been rapidly growing but until 2001 had been concentrated in the South. However, the desire to replicate the wholesale success achieved in the South had led Tony to search for strategically placed wholesale premises initially in the Midlands and North of England, and when Southam Tyres came on the market in October 2001, Tony beat off competition from UK, European and Far Eastern wholesalers to acquire the Southam business. This immediately provided Micheldever with the UK’s most successful 4×4 tyre distributor and its specialist sales team, plus exclusive distribution rights to BFGoodrich 4×4, General Tire and Roadhog. However, due to virtually zero investment from its previous owners, the Southam warehouse was poorly equipped, lacking adequate storage systems and having an ageing fleet of vehicles.

The Micheldever investment came swiftly, with a new fleet, tyreracking systems and a vastly increased range of stock. The benefits of having the most comprehensive range of car and 4X4 tyres available in the Midlands quickly led to excellent sales results for the previously product starved Southam sales teams.

However, the move that really sent the message out that Micheldever had intentions to become a national player was the announcement of the new Halifax depot. A purpose built warehouse on four floors it will have a capacity for 600,000 tyres. By mid 2003 work was progressing well at Halifax, and finally in Sept 2003 the UK’s largest tyre warehouse commenced deliveries on a phased schedule.

Obviously for Micheldever the main thrust of the business at present is the development of the wholesale division and taking the offer to the trade across the UK. One of the much-vaunted drivers for offering national coverage is the potential to be developed in the franchised dealer network. The opportunity to supply tyres as first fit on fleet cars through the franchised dealers is reportedly enormous.

Tony Todd is adamant that there are two factors to being successful. The first is that you can’t sell it if you haven’t got it; the second is that you can’t do the job unless you have got the right tools and the right people in place.

17th November 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Wholesalers

With tyre retailers trying to minimise their stock holdings, the pressure is on the wholesaler as never before to have the right tyres in stock and to deliver them when required. Some wholesalers supply on a weekly basis, others will deliver three or more times a day if required. Is the retailer prepared to pay for this convenience and, if not, can the wholesalers continue to offer what is virtually a just-in-time service when their costs continue to rise? We talk to the major players in this demanding sector.

9th October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Toyo doubles capacity

T&A talks to Martin Sutherland, general manager at Toyo in the UK, for an update on the company development.

Toyo is perhaps one of the most recognised mid-market brands in the UK. A series of targeted media campaigns both above and below the line have gone a long way to establishing the brand as the performance tyre of choice for many driving enthusiasts. In spite of the success of the UK operation it remains answerable to Toyo Reifen in Germany, so there is no UK managing director, the head of the chain of command in the UK is Martin Sutherland. Martin Sutherland has been with Toyo in the UK for the past 21 years, joining the company from Pirelli; so he knows a thing or two about the market in the UK.

Toyo has recently moved premises at Rushden. The re-location was only about 100 yards up the road, but the new premises have doubled the available storage space allowing Toyo to improve its stock capacity and as consequentially improve its service to its customers. Martin Sutherland says, “We have virtually doubled our stock capacity by moving to this unit. It offers us 70,000 square feet, which is twice the area of the old unit. However, we have managed to relocate without too great a disruption to our service or distribution. In fact, in the past we used to hold stock at the dockside and at one point had as many as 70 containers sitting in storage. All that stock is now held here, and we still have room to expand.

“One of the limitations we had on developing the business was the warehouse capacity and our restriction on turning stock around. That is no longer an issue and that allows us to offer a full width of patterns and sizes in all ranges. That gives us the potential to further build the business and we have the capacity here to grow considerably in all areas.”

The wholesale and distribution side of the tyre trade is going through a period of expansion and we could point to a number of companies investing considerable sums in new premises and expanding coverage. Toyo, though, is probably one of the few manufacturers talking so positively of expansion. What makes Toyo such a strong developer at this stage?

“There are probably a number of contributory factors,” says Martin Sutherland, “In the last fiscal year to 2003 we had our best ever results in terms of income and in terms of unit sales. In a market said to have declined by 2 per cent we saw an across the board increase of 12 per cent. That includes passenger car, 4×4, light truck and truck tyres. In high performance car tyres we saw a 37 per cent increase in sales.”

Winning volume and value in today’s tyre market is an uphill struggle, competing against established brands and in some sectors having to fend off price-led competition from the far east means that a 12 per cent increase is no mean feat. What do you attribute the success to?

“Without doubt,” says Martin Sutherland, “Much of our success is due to the quality of the marketing campaigns we have established over the years. Mike Rignall came to Toyo with the remit to redevelop our marketing and to increase brand awareness and he has done an excellent job in raising our profile in the trade and with the consumer. The way we have marketed the brand is now paying dividends for us. We established a policy of exclusivity for dealers and we have stuck to that policy and we have ensured that our availability is good.”

9th October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Tyrespot bucks the trend with retreads

We hear a lot today about the demise of the retread industry, especially the car tyre sector, and a lot of tyre dealers have stopped stocking retreads, preferring instead to carry cheap new tyres.

Against this background, it is refreshing to learn of an independent tyre dealer who is not only still stocking retreads, but actively selling them. The company in question is Durham-based retailer and wholesaler Tyrespot, which stocks tyres from nearby manufacturer C-Tyres, and Managing Director John Shaw says that he has seen retread sales rise over the last two years and he expects to increase sales by a further ten per cent this year.

He explains: “We have never changed our policy towards retreads. Our experience has shown that if we stock them, we will sell them. This year we expect to sell more than 20,000 retreaded tyres through our retail and wholesale business, proving that it has been well worthwhile sticking with the product.”

John Shaw points out that much of Tyrespot’s growth has been achieved in market niches, emphasising the opportunities open to dealers willing to target and work at these markets. He says: “Although sales of 80 series retreads have stagnated, we have seen substantial growth in sales of retreads for 4×4 vehicles as well as increased demand for 65, 55 and 50 series tyres. It is clear that there is a large potential market for the sale of retreaded tyres to younger drivers who want to make sure that they are legal and who see the economic benefits offered by retreads. In addition, we are looking closely at the opportunities presented by retreads within the winter tyre market. As a result, we are well on the way to a record year of retread sales.”

9th October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Magowan joins Group Tyre

Northern Ireland’s Magowan Tyres has joined Group Tyre. This development gives Group Tyre coverage in Northern Ireland and coincides with Magowan’s move from general bulk wholesaling to a more structured and targeted regional wholesaler of quality branded tyres. Daryll Magowan jnr. Says, “This is a new challenge for the business and we see the future as being more structured and more sophisticated. We will be developing the quality of our portfolio and offering a much improved quality of service to our wholesale customers.”
Magowan reported that the company was building an all-new warehouse with 30,000 sq ft of floor space with four tiers of storage giving an equivalent 130-140,000 sq ft of storage space. The new facility , which should be operational within seven months will also house a 22 bay fast fit operation that will se the company move into a wider area of fast fit service.

22nd September 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Brian Smith talks about Continental

Some 18 months after Continental divested itself of NTA Retail, NTA Commercial and Viking International, T&A approached Brian Smith to find out how Continental Tyre Group was managing in its current format. After all, the complete closure/sale of a manufacturer’s equity is not an every day occurrence and must have had negative effects on Continental’s business in the UK.

Brian Smith knew that the performance of Continental Tyre Group without its UK retail and wholesale operations was going to be at the heart of the matter and he went straight to the point. “Continental Tyre group has shown its ability to handle change both quickly and professionally. One of our great strengths is the ability to make decisions, act on them and adhere to them even though they may be difficult courses of action to follow. We can spot opportunities and act quickly to take advantage of them. That is one of the core policies at Continental, to take opportunities and to handle changes when things don’t work out as planned.

“There is a table in reception that carries the Continental Mission Statement: “To establish Continental Tyre Group as the most professional supplier of quality tyres and customer services, respected for consistent, stable, business relationships. To be known for understanding the customers’ needs and for being responsive in meeting them.” That is a benchmark for the standards we apply at Continental Tyre Group and we need to ask ourselves, are we really like that?

“If we are to achieve that mission it is the customer services element which is particularly important. Then we need to consider how we think internally and what our aims are within Continental Tyre Group. It is in many ways more important therefore to differentiate ourselves from our competitors by the way we handle our customers to develop consistent business relationships.”

11th August 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Bosal UK Sells Four Wholesale Exhaust Branches

Bosal UK is to sell four of its 19 Silencer Distributors (UK) Limited exhaust wholesale branches to its long-time customer Southern Exhaust Supplies Ltd. The deal was described as “a multi-million Pound agreement” and SES has the option to purchase further SDL sites in the future. Bosal acquired SDL out of Receivership following the collapse of SDL parent company Finelist in December 2000. The purchase was made to ensure continued supply of Bosal exhaust products to the UK aftermarket in the short and medium term and was always described by Bosal as “a holding manoeuvre”.

29th July 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Stapletons shifts alliance to Fit4Fleet as AA eschews the independents

STS Stapletons Tyres and Exhausts has joined Fit4Fleet, giving the company access to a national account facility. This is a boost to Fit4Fleet and perhaps gives an insight into the relationship between AA Tyrefit and Stapletons, founders of Tyreserve, which later became AA Tyrefit.The move puts Stapletons back in the running in terms of serving the fleet customers and also serves to boost Fit4Fleet, bringing their membership to 850 operational centres and some 350 mobiles.Fit4Fleet’s Dominic Bateson told T&A, “We are delighted to have Stapletons on board. The company has excellent coverage backed by excellent brand availability through its wholesale operation. Stapleton’s is also very experienced in fleet work and understands the demanding nature of the clients and has suitably strong operational controls. These are characteristics that are very important when dealing with the fleet customers.”This move is explained by strategic developments at AA Tyrefit, formerly the Stapletons’ originated Tyreserve.Says David Goodyear of AA Tyrefit, “The traditional fast-fit centre is a thing of the past and tyre networks that maintain them simply do not have the right structure to survive in the future. We aim to offer the flexibility, pricing and service that the tyre customer rightly expects.”Goodyear cites research by AA Tyrefit that suggests just four per cent of customers using a mobile service would return to a fast fit outlet.”The service advantage is so strong,” argues Goodyear, “that the biggest hurdle we face is the fact that people expect there to be a premium for mobile fitting. There isn’t. Our mobile fitting is free.”Such is the confidence in building the mobile service that AA Tyrefit has eschewed the independent networks completely. David Goodyear explains, “We can provide the entire service capacity we need from within our mobile resources. The need for the independent network has passed, although we are still maintaining relationships with those outlets that offer mobile tyre fitting to provide back-up to our own units.”In further moves to hit its target of becoming the largest tyre distributor in the UK by 2007 (David Goodyear, T&A April 2003 p 37) the company has further developed its mobile fleet, which has now reached a total of 70 mobiles with a further 200 to be commissioned by the year-end, rising to 500 units by 2005.

8th July 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Ashley Croft Joins Micheldever

Career Tracks, UK News

Ashley Croft, previously Managing Director of Stapleton’s Tyre Services until October of last year, has joined Micheldever Tyre Services (MTS) as Director. His prime responsibilities at Micheldever will be the Wholesale and Logistics development of the business.

16th May 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Q4 And Full Year Results For TBC

TBC Corporation (Memphis/TN), one of the USA’s largest aftermarket tyre distributors has announced record sales and earnings for the forth quarter and year ended 31st December 2002.

12th February 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Kirkby Tyres: Re-focusing For The Future

Product News, UK News

Kirkby Tyres is a major wholesaler in the agricultural sector and is increasingly turning towards that market to develop its business. Kirkby Tyres has been around for a long time, almost 50 years in fact. In that time the business has seen many changes but through all the changes it remains in the hands of the Rosenthal family, with Gordon Rosenthal, grandson of the founder “Joe Rose” at the helm.The company started as a casings collector and dealer, before developing into wholesaling. When the wholesaling of new tyres outgrew the casing side, the company made the decision to concentrate on new tyre distribution. Gordon Rosenthal took over from his father, Leslie Rosenthal, as Managing Director in 1980. Gordon is now Chairman, with Dave Dorrity joining the company in 1999 as Managing Director.Kirkby Tyres operates with three depots to cover the British Isles. The head office is at Liverpool and there is a depot in Perth, Scotland which offers a very similar stock profile to that in Liverpool, though the demand for high performance and premium car tyres is stronger north of the border. Ireland is covered from Dublin by Kirkby Tyres (Ireland) Ltd and in addition to the full range offered in the UK is the Irish agent for Ohtsu/Falken, and is the sole distributor of Wolfrace and Smiths alloy wheels in Ireland. The Group has a turnover in excess of 16 million pounds and employs 61 staff. It is worth noting that the breakdown of the business puts the agricultural sector at 45 per cent of the Group’s turnover, truck at 35 per cent, and car and earthmover at five per cent each.

9th January 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Kumho UK Appoints Sales Director

From 1st December, Steve Tidmarsh will be the new Sales Director of Kumho UK. He has a wealth of experience in the UK tyre industry, having spent some 29 years with Goodyear UK in a series of senior positions, most recently that of Sales and Marketing Director, Consumer Tyres. He takes up his new post with the company in a planned move from Kumho UK’s exclusive Marshal brand distributor, Bond International, whom he joined earlier this year to gain experience of the wholesale market in the UK.

27th November 2002/by Tyrepress Editors

Viking International Strengthens Senior Management Team

Viking International, one of the UK’s leading tyre, exhaust and automotive wholesale company’s, has appointed Mike Curry as National Sales Manager. As part of the senior management team, Mike will be responsible for eleven business development managers that cover the country from nine strategically positioned regional warehouses. He will also play a leading role in key national account expansion.Mike Curry has over twenty years sales experience working with blue-chip companies in a variety of senior positions. His most recent appointment was as sales and marketing director with Tenneco Automotive who manufacture Walker exhaust systems and Monroe shock absorbers.

26th November 2002/by Tyrepress Editors

Man Accused Of Reselling Recalled Tyres

In Michigan, used tyre dealer Vernald Cole has been accused of selling recalled Firestone tyres on the wholesale market. The tyres have had the US DOT number removed from the sidewall – in accordance with recall instructions, but experts believe that this could have weakened the tyres. Dealers are then supposed to cut the tyres to make them unusable. Cole, whose slogan is “Cole Tire, the poor man’s friend”, is believed to have sold the tyres in Miami and Mexico. If convicted, he faces fines up to $20,000 and ten years’ imprisonment.

16th May 2002/by Tyrepress Editors