/>And McNamara and Marangoni are taking the logical approach to getting established. “Our goal is to get our products in with key dealers on the East and West Coasts first, then see how the map unfolds from there,” said McNamara. ®We’re looking for major hitters on the coasts.®
One big advantage Marangoni North America is offering is territory exclusivity – a rare thing for manufacturer brands on this continent. The company, McNamara said, is not looking to dump product into the market, but to build a strong, lasting presence. “The image, quality and brand awareness for Marangoni is very high,” he said, ®which gives us a distinct advantage.®
As a new tire player, Marangoni has built a strong high-tech image on its home continent, competing against all the major brands. By keeping a sharp focus on particular product lines, Marangoni has been able to build strong home market business.
And Marangoni North America’s Italian parent is quite serious about establishing itself here in North America. The company is investing some $200 million to build a second tire plant in Europe with a capacity of 4.5 million passenger and light truck/SUV tires a year.
Initially, McNamara said, Marangoni North America is focusing its distribution efforts on retail chains, warehouse distributors and independent dealer chains. These targets, he feels, give the brand the best opportunity to grow quickly, but in a controlled fashion.
As for the tires themselves, Marangoni is bringing its entire catalog of passenger, performance, winter, light truck and industrial tires to the U.S. and Canada – even adding sizes to meet more common North American applications.
Marangoni’s product offering includes:
Zeta Linea – the company’s hallmark ultra-high performance W- and Y-rated line. The deep grooved directional is available in three 18-inch sizes.
Zeta ESC – Available in a range of 16- and 17-inch sizes and featuring the company’s ESC System technology (Economy, Safety, Comfort), the W-rated performance line features an anti-aquaplaning tread design and rim protector.
  Heron – With a unique double wing directional tread, this line comes in a range of 14- to 16-inch sizes, and H-, V- and W-speed ratings.
  Trio – The high-mileage touring tire comes in R-, S-, T- and H-speed ratings and 13- to 15-inch sizes.
   M900 T80 – This standard 80-series tire comes in a range of 12- and 13-inch sizes in R-, S- and T-speed ratings.
   Meteo ESC – The 13- to 15-inch winter tire lines, in T- and H-speed ratings, features a heavily siped directional tread.
   Meteo Grip – Studdable winter tire, also heavily siped, comes in  13- to 15-inch sizes, and is T-rated.
M100 LT – A 14- to 16-inch light truck/SUV tire is R-rated and available is a range of 70- and 75-series sizes.
M100 W – A winter version of the M100, with a Q-speed rating and a range of 14- to 16-inch sizes.
On the industrial side, Marangoni is bringing in a wide range of superelastic, ring and pneumatic tires for folk lifts and other applications.®′