Magazine for the professional tire industry
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37 www.moderntiredealer.com By Ann Neal T he nation's top commercial tire dealers have adjusted their store counts, added equipment, expanded service oferings and emphasized employee training to be beter competitors over the last year. All of those strategies are in play in the commercial division of Black's Tire Service Inc. (BTS). Te Whiteville, N.C., company is No. 23 on this year's Top 25 Commercial Tire Dealers list. Te company created the BTS Academy, a training cen- ter adjacent to its corporate headquarters, in April. The 38,000-square-foot facility houses a classroom, conference room, dealer showroom and a garage outfted with equip- ment from Hunter Engineering Co. and other suppliers for hands-on instruction and practice. "We are making a big push on sales and technician training at BTS in 2014 and 2015 to make sure we stay on top of all sides of the tire business," says Jeremy Benton, vice president of commercial sales and marketing A formal training program is important to atracting and retaining talent, especially as the company is hiring to staf two new stores. Retail and commercial tire sales and service are provided at a full-service, 12-bay store that opened in Loris, S.C., on Sept. 29. A commercial outlet in Dunn, N.C., is set to open on Dec. 1. Located of Interstate 95, the facility will have two drive-through service bays that provide tire, oil, light truck and trailer repair and truck alignment services as well as OTR services. Both facilities are located in new markets for the company. In addition, BTS expanded its service oferings with the purchase of a mobile press-on machine and a stationary press- on machine in July 2014, according to Benton. Te company is also concentrating on the OTR side of its business. "BTS is working with Goodyear to grow our of-the-road tire market share in North and South Carolina in the third and fourth quarters of 2014 and into 2015." Growing through acquisition Bob Sumerel Tire Co. Inc. purchased fve facilities from Kauffman Tire Inc. in May 2014 in northeast Ohio. The locations, formerly a part of Kaufman Tire's Commercial Division, include four combination retail/commercial and farm tire service centers located in Wooster, Ravenna, Orwell and Medina. Te purchase included a Bandag retread plant, also located at the Wooster facility. President Todd Sumerel says the Kauffman stores are expected to add $25 million in revenue in the frst 12 months. Bob Sumerel Tire holds the No. 15 spot on the commercial tire dealers list. Te Erlanger, Ky., based dealership has 13 commercial stores, six combined commercial/retail outlets and six retread shops in Kentucky, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Best-One Tire and Service purchased four commercial stores and a Bandag retread plant from American Tire Distributors Inc. (ATD) to establish a presence in the Northeast Ohio market. Te former Terry's Tire Town stores in Canton, Gi- rard, Twinsburg and Alliance became Great Lakes Best-One Tire & Service locations on Aug. 1, 2014. Te retread plant is located at the Alliance facility. No. 2-ranked Best-One Tire & Service has 16 retread plants and more than 250 partner locations in 11 states. Also in August 2014, McCarthy Tire Service Inc. added a retail-commercial store and a retread shop in Albany, N.Y., with the purchase of Terry-Haggerty Tire Co. Inc. McCarthy Tire now has seven Bandag retread plants, one OTR retread plant, and 44 outlets in seven states. John McCarthy Jr., president of the fourth-generation, family-owned business, says the purchase bolstered service and production capabilities in upstate New York and aligns with the company's long-term strategic plan. "Tis acquisition, along with our acquisition of Main Tire in December of 2012, clearly demonstrates our commitment to the New York market and also to the greater northeastern region." Te revenue from the Main Tire purchase helped lif McCarthy to No. 6 on this year's top commercial dealers list, up one spot from last year. Neil Horn, vice president, says the company has also increased its ofering of mechanical services. More services and equipment Sullivan Tire Co. Inc., which ranks No. 19, is expanding alignments, trailer rehab and other mechanical services as well as adding sales staf, according to John Donovan, vice president. John Snider, CEO and president of Snider Tire Inc., which does business as Snider Fleet Solutions, says his company is also expanding service oferings and investing in training. Te company holds the No. 5 spot in the rankings. Te No. 7 ranked dealer, Service Tire Truck Centers Inc., has taken several steps to keep pace with the changing market- place, according to Scot Bennet, vice president of sales. "We increased our shifs to handle de- mand. Our mechanical oferings are expanding rapidly. Finding qualifed personnel remains dif- fcult and we are working with diferent agencies to increase our presence." Commercial Tire Dealer™ Dealers change with their markets More stores, equipment, services and training help top commercial dealers be better competitors ALSO IN CTD Top 25 commercial tire dealers in the United States . . . 40 How to use social media as a voice for your dealership . . . 42 Answers to 4 key questions will help you survive . . . 48 Commercially viable . . . 50