Jim Smith - Former Editor, Tire Review
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Exploiting SmartWay

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the U.S. EPA’s SmartWay program. This “unique collaboration” between freight shippers, fleets and logistics companies focuses on improving “fuel efficiency and reduced emissions from freight transport.” To do so, though, it relies heavily on voluntary action by all parties, particularly those that produce truck components and accessories that

Building a New Experience

Three dealer meetings in three cities. Two words. One focus. “Purchasing experience” or “brand experience” – whatever phrase you prefer – were oft-cited and oft-repeated as the best pathway to today’s “consumer.” Whether that “consumer” is a mom with three kids or a tough-as-nails fleet manager or a penny-mining mine operator, their “purchasing experience” with

With Lips Tight, We Try to Explain the Goodyear-SRI Implosion

Looking at the Goodyear-Sumitomo kerfuffle, there have been a lot of questions about the future of the Dunlop brand in North America and what the potential ramifications of this rather odd divorce. For background, on Feb. 13 we learned that Goodyear had filed for dissolution of its joint venture with Sumitomo Rubber Industries, a partnership

Seven Easy Ways to Add Sales from Best One Tire & Service’s John Miller

In his financial seminar for K&M Tire dealers, John Miller, director of retail for Best One Tire & Service, offered these business-building suggestions: Improve phone skills and convert one additional call per week: Add $14,200 in new annual sales. Ask every customer about how well their wipers worked the last time they used them: Add $8,000

Wasted Tax Dollars and What Goodyear Might Do With New Cash

Seems the state of New York has caught the same fund-misdirection bug that has plagued states like Georgia and others for years. Money taken in on tire purchases that was supposed to go toward waste tire management efforts gets side-tracked to general funds – or worse – leaving scrap tire disposal programs scratching for help.

Considering Dealer Attractiveness, Tread Inspections and Birthdays

Want to be really, REALLY attractive to customers? The Hamilton Spectator in Hamilton, Ontario, offered their ideas as to what consumers should look for “in an outstanding tire dealer.” Pay heed. “A good place to start is the tire dealers’ website. A good dealer will have details about their background, as well as a listing

Starting to See Some Light

A new Springsteen album is always cause for celebration, and his latest is a mix of new, re-polished older songs and covers. In total, “High Hopes” is a cautionary counter to the foreboding “Wrecking Ball.” Just enough optimism to make you feel like everything will be OK. Just enough warning to keep you alert. The

Five Questions With Ken Langhals

Ken is founder and president of K&M Tire, a fast-growing distributor based in Delphos, Ohio. We caught up with Langhals at K&M’s recent dealer meeting in Chicago. Q: With the demise of American Car Care Centers, what do you see as the impact in the market? What that’s going to mean for, particularly, the member

What’s Next for ATD?

Now that American Tire Distributors has successfully closed its $310 million deal to buy out Hercules Tire & Rubber Co., Tire Review editor Jim Smith met with ATD president and CEO Bill Berry to talk about the distribution giant’s plans for the private brander/wholesaler/exporter. Tire Review: What exactly are Hercules’s operations in China, and how

After Spurt, K&M Shifts Focus to Improve

Back in 1970, Ken Langhals never dreamed that one day he would be hosting a dinner for 600 people. The early years, he’ll recall, were about hand-to-mouth survival. Now he puts food on the table for some 400 employees. K&M Tire’s focus today is on “continuous improvement of planning, product, service and marketing” to provide

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Seven Easy Ways to Add Sales from Best One Tire & Service’s John Miller

In his financial seminar for K&M Tire dealers, John Miller, director of retail for Best One Tire & Service, offered these business-building suggestions: Improve phone skills and convert one additional call per week: Add $14,200 in new annual sales. Ask every customer about how well their wipers worked the last time they used them: Add $8,000

John Miller
Bridgestone OTR Exec’s Presentation at TIA Conference

During the recent TIA OTR Conference, held Feb. 19-21 in Marco Island, Fla., Wade Gatlin, vice president of mining tires for Bridgestone Americas’ OTR unit, gave the tire manufacturer keynote address “Value in a Changing World.”

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