News (RSS) - Tires First - Tires, Alignments, Brakes, Oil Change, Auto Service & Repair

'Quality-Performance-Value' Builds Success From Top to Bottom

31 Jan 2012 11:24:00 EST

Our location is not where anybody would come and say, 'a tire store would be good there,'" admits Tom Hargrove, co-owner with Mark Morrison of Tires First in Columbus, Ga.

The shop is located on a tree-lined road not far from a tank farm and across from a residential neighborhood. Nevertheless, they still get plenty of customers.

Enough that last year, they sold almost 24,000 tires from their one location, not including sales to car dealers and more than 2,400 retreaded commercial tires that passed through the business.

The company has a healthy mix of business that includes retail, commercial and government (school bus fleets, local, state, federal and military customers plus government contractors). Overall, tires account for 65% of total sales, with vehicle service making up the remaining 35%. The regional market has a population of approximately 210,000, not including a growing number of army personnel at nearby Fort Benning.

Morrison and Hargrove represent the second and third generations in the automotive business in their families. Morrison, 53, whose father was in the wholesale tire business, started working with Tires First's previous owner in 1982. Hargrove, 58, was with Michelin 14 years before he joined the company in 1994. The pair had an opportunity to buy the business in November 2002 and immediately rebuilt the office, added bays and purchased new service trucks.

"We committed to action with this partnership," says Morrison. "Our main focus was to the customer and to the community." Each partner has chosen his duties, and they play to each other's strengths. "I don't question him and he doesn't question me. It's a great relationship," Morrison adds.

It Pays to Advertise

The partners doubled the store's annual sales in a mere seven years. Traffic continues to grow; the company's 32 employees sometimes see more than 100 vehicles a day move through the sprawling, 28-bay facility How do they maintain such growth? "We work our butts off!" Hargrove answers with a hearty laugh. He then reveals one of the secrets to their success. "We advertise like crazy. When the economy gets slow, we actually beef it up to get more awareness."

Adds Morrison, "We use all of our earned co-op advertising plus much more from Tires First." Their primary means of advertising is TV, where they sometimes spend $10,000 a month running commercials on two local network affiliates, as well as in cable packages.

"It is not the fact of having a commercial, but branding ourselves," Morrison explains. In 90% of the commercials, the co-owners hammer on the company's "Quality-Performance-Value" slogan. The result is this message has stuck in the community's mind.

Billboards have been another way the pair get name and face recognition within the community. Now, with digital electronic billboards, they have the ability to change the board within one hour via e-mail, and to run daily specials if they want, which puts them another step in front of the competition. In fact, one of their digital signs is situated across the street from a competitor, Morrison notes.

They also buy print ads in high school sports programs, have signs at area baseball and football fields, advertise in a regional magazine and even have their company's name printed on score cards used at the local military base golf course. Tires First is just getting started with Facebook, thanks to help from Morrison's college-age daughters.

Personal Relationships Key

Having their faces appear nearly everywhere in the community has paid off. "People know us," says Hargrove. "It sounds corny, but our customers are our friends. They know about me and my hobbies, I know about them and about their kids going to college. Columbus is a big city, but yet small enough that we know the people and give them that personal touch they want." One or both owners that customers see in TV commercials greet and take care of everyone who comes in the door.

The partners know customers usually aren't happy about having to spend money on their vehicles, so they try to make them feel comfortable during their visit. For this reason they offer a coffee bar, hot tea, cappuccino machine and chilled bottled water without charge. Live plants help to make tIle waiting room more inviting, as do Internet service and big-screen HDTV There's a free shuttle to take customers to work or home, but "some customers elect for us to take them to the mall to shop," says Morrison. "During deer season, it is not uncommon for us to have a grill going in the morning with some deer sausage. The customers always like tasting this treat," he adds.

Community-Involved

"Without a community, no business can be successful," says Morrison. The partners help the community grow by giving it support and being involved. "We are always there with the schools, churches and non-profit organizations," he adds. When fund-raising is requested, the company is quick to donate oil changes for raffles or door prizes. Tires First supports the Red Cross, Cancer Society, Autism Society, Boys Club, Carpenters Ranch, Little League and Boy and Girl Scouts with donations and gift certificates.

Two employees of the Tires First team donate their time to help coach high school football and wrestling. "This is a win-win situation," according to Morrison. "The parents respect the time our employees put in and we gain new customers."

The store manager also serves as a volunteer for the State of Georgia Wildlife and Fisheries. He trains, teaches and certifies hunters so they can obtain a hunting license. Tires First allows its waiting room to be used for evening training sessions. "It's good for community involvement, but it also brings people into our store," says Morrison. This community service has been aired nationally on ESPN, further increasing the public's awareness of Tires First.

Business Challenges

"Our largest obstacles have been working through growth," says Morrison. "We could use another 10 bays, but we're geographically challenged right now," says Hargrove. They are scouting a new location, but have not decided whether it will be a move or a second location. The present location is in an area that has seen much growth over the past decade.

One new neighbor that moved in just down the road last year is a well known big-box retailer (you know, the one that has headquarters in Arkansas) . But Mark and Tom are not alarmed and don't fret about lost sales. To the contrary, they credit the big retailer's tire center with actually sending them business.

"We get their overflow," says Morrison. "They're only going to do so much, so when they get broken studs or brakes and alignments they can't do, we end up getting that business." Hargrove credits having built a relationship with the local managers at the big-box tire center for being able to get those referrals. "If anything, we gained a whole lot more than we potentially could have lost," he adds.

Tires First's standing in the community also helps. Hargrove continues, "A lot of customers know us, and come in with quotes from me big-box retailers and ask, 'Would you meet this price? I'd rather buy from y'all.' With everything we offer, we always take the order."

Can they still turn a profit? "You have to look at the total ticket, not just the tires, for me gross profit," he explains. "You may suffer a little bit on tires, but then you can pick up an alignment or brake service." Plus, if it's a program tire, the extra volume helps him to qualify for a lower price from the distributor.

Another challenge from growth has come in the commercial side of the business. Tires First became a Michelin retread associate dealer through Snider Tire in Columbus, hiring the manager and managing the accounts.

Then Snider moved out of town, trusting Tires First to service its accounts. "This is a great growth potential ," says Morrison. "With both companies having similar goals, the transition has been challenging, but very achievable. We are looking to more success through this transaction."

Another Secret to Success

Whenever possible, the partners make use of their vendors' marketing expertise. "We have had ATD and Michelin benchmark Tires First. We are able to look at ratios of similar businesses and try to improve our standings," says Morrison.

He believes every tire dealer should take advantage of this tool, since it gives you a look at the entire business averages of dealers your size.

» Read Actual Article

Consistency for Results

16 Jan 2012 14:56:35 EST

Mark Morrison, co-owner of Tires First in Columbus Ga., states very clearly that having the owner as spokesperson “just works for us.”

“We’re afraid to change it,” he offers. The single location dealership has 24 bays and handles both retail and commercial (truck to OTR to farm) customers. Things are so busy, both Morrison and his partner, Tom Hargrove, work at the sales counter five to six days a week.

In Morrison’s opinion, being the spokesperson only works if you actually work in the store and are visible to customers. They know who you are, he says, and “they feel like they have a friend when they see us working in the store. It makes it easier to sell.”

In Morrison’s case, some other family members got involved. Morrison’s daughter appeared in a commercial extolling Tires First’s brand choices. Despite the pretty face, business fell off a little so Hargrove and Morrison went right back to appearing in the spots themselves.

Their advertising slogan is “Quality, Performance, Value, – Tires First” and they use it in every spot. Some spots have Morrison and Hargrove coming in just at the end, presenting the slogan. Often that is all that is needed. Appearing briefly can validate your company’s message and can be as powerful as appearing in the entire spot.

The co-owners also like to get out in the community. Their latest TV commercial was shot at nearby Ft. Benning, and they included a 10% military discount offer in the ad.

Being your own spokesperson will “separate your business from others by making it more personal,” says Morrison. “I want local people to see who we are and what we do.”

By Rick Barnhart
(from Tire Review: Everybody's A Star [Dec 11])

Latest Commercial - "Proud"

21 Sep 2011 09:22:10 EST

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Michelin launches Bib online chatbot feature

27 Jul 2011 09:19:19 EST

GREENVILLE, S.C. (July 26, 2011) — Michelin North America Inc. has launched a chatbot feature on its corporate website that allows visitors to “chat” with the tire maker’s mascot, Bibendum.

The animated character appears on the home page of the site, and provides “a human-like interface between users and the Michelin brand,” the Greenville-based tire maker said. It is capable of chatting in both English and French, the company’s two official languages, and is programmed to discuss about 10,000 different topics each month.

Michelin said the Bibendum chatbot serves as a visual agent to guide visitors around the website and answer questions about the company and Bib—including even his pastimes and favorite food.

The new website feature was developed in cooperation with VirtuOz, a French-U.S. firm that specializes in creating intelligent virtual assistants, and video interface design company Cantoche. The Bibendum chatbot offers “a higher level of performance than the market standard in terms of the quantity of information provided, the quality of the interface and the expressive range of the animations,” Michelin said.

Link

Michelin salutes final space shuttle flight

22 Jul 2011 14:06:41 EST

GREENVILLE, S.C. (July 21, 2011) — With the touchdown early today of the space shuttle Atlantis, it’s more than just the end to an era of U.S. space travel — it’s the end of a tire supply pact for Michelin North America Inc., which has been the sole provider of tires for the spacecraft.

Michelin has been manufacturing space shuttle tires at its Norwood, N.C., aviation tire plant since the U.S. shuttle program began more than 25 years ago.

Ron Olds, vice president of sales for Michelin Aircraft Tires, called the final landing for the shuttle “a proud moment for Michelin and NASA to watch the close of the space shuttle era. The final landing closed a 30-year chapter in American history that showcased some of the greatest technological advancements spurred on by the American spirit.

“Every aspect of the shuttle program—down to the tires designed to dependably return the spacecraft safely to earth—is a tribute to the American ‘can do’ attitude.”

A Michelin press release described how the space shuttle’s tires functioned under extreme conditions, including handling landings at speeds up to 288 mph and carrying loads as much as three times that of a Boeing 747 tire, which the Greenville-based tire maker said “is the equivalent of a 40-car starting line-up at a NASCAR race.”

Each shuttle tire weighs about 230 pounds and takes approximately six hours to build. The space shuttle takes six tires—four main-landing gear and two nose-landing gear tires—to land. The shuttle tires are inflated up to 373 psi and use nitrogen, which best maintains pressure in varying altitudes and extreme temperatures, according to Michelin.

With the U.S. shuttle fleet now retired, the vehicles will become museum pieces at various locations, including in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.

Vandals slash 50 tires on postal trucks

18 Jul 2011 00:42:38 EST

COLUMBUS, GA (WTVM) - If you noticed your mail came a little later than usual, it's because your postal worker may have been putting their car back together after vandals slashed their tires. But it wasn't just one vehicle, police say multiple cars were affected.

Columbus Postmaster Barbara King said, "We noticed it when the sun came up, about 7 o'clock this morning. It's going to take about four hours to get everything done."

Instead of loading their vans with mail, postal workers are changing tires. That's because vandals slashed the tires to 25 vehicles over the weekend.

"We had approximately 25 vehicles damaged this morning, approximately 50 tires were slashed here at the carrier annex," King told News Leader Nine.

King added the damage caused to these mail trucks is really costing the postal service, in more ways than one, "We lost about $4,000 in damages this morning and it also may impact the normal times our customers will receive their mail."

Because the mail trucks are government property, the vandals are facing federal charges for slashing the tires.

"It's a terrible thing to happen. It has happened at the carrier annex before and we've turned the information over to the police so we're hoping that they can find out who did this terrible thing this morning," said King.

The United States Postal Service did have security cameras posted here in the parking lot and they are working with the Columbus Police Department to figure out who the suspects are. If you have any information on this crime, please call Columbus police at (706)653-3300.

By Taylor Barnhill
Link

Michelin unveils new truck tire for refuse applications

18 Jul 2011 00:40:08 EST

XZU®S2 Tire for Urban and Refuse Uses, New Size for XZU®S Pre-Mold Retread

GREENVILLE, SC -- (July 11, 2011) -- Michelin Americas Truck Tires (MATT) is introducing a next generation tire and a new retread size offering for refuse applications. The MICHELIN® XZU®S2 tire delivers up to a 20 percent increase in removal miles over its predecessor the XZUS tire. The new XZUS 280 retread size completes the XZUS Pre-Mold retread line for the most commonly used sizes in refuse applications.

"Refuse trucks need tires that stand up to the rigors of the environment. These applications need extreme sidewall protection, scrub resistant treads, and maximum retreadability. The XZUS2 tire provides higher removal mileage, improved retreadability, and the protection to keep the vehicle up and running, even in the most difficult applications", said Ted Becker, vice president of marketing for Michelin Americas Truck Tires.

The XZUS2 tire featuring Co-Ex Technology provides a 20-percent increase in wear life, as compared with its predecessor, the MICHELIN XZU®S tire. Co-Ex Technology combines a scrub-resistant compound for long tread life and a cool base tread compound to reduce temperatures in the crown area and preserve the casing. For application-specific protection, the tire features a robust shoulder design and protector ribs, as well as an optimized bead design which improves retreadability. The tire is available in a 315/80R22.5 size.

The latest size offering for the popular XZUS Pre-Mold Retread, the 280 tread size, extends the ability to maximize the tire lifecycle in refuse applications. The XZUS Pre-Mold retread line, including the new 280 size, also comes with Co-Ex Technology, which preserves casing life and optimizes removal mileage.

Dedicated to the improvement of sustainable mobility, Michelin designs, manufactures and sells tires for every type of vehicle, including airplanes, automobiles, bicycles, earthmovers, farm equipment, heavy-duty trucks, motorcycles and the space shuttle. The company also publishes travel guides, hotel and restaurant guides, maps and road atlases. Headquartered in Greenville, S.C., Michelin North America ,www.michelintruck.com) employs more than 21,400 and operates 18 major manufacturing plants in 16 locations.

For more information, visit michelinmedia.com

Link

Goodyear closes TN plant

18 Jul 2011 00:36:42 EST

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. said it has stopped production at its tire manufacturing facility in Union City, Tenn.

The tire maker announced plans in February to close the plant by the end of the year, but said this week that it was able to transfer production to other facilities faster than expected.

As a result of the accelerated closure and related severance expenses to about 1,800 people, Goodyear said it plans to record additional after-tax charges of about $20 million.

Most of the charges will be recorded in the second quarter of this year.

The company said it plans to detail the timing of charges and savings when it releases its second-quarter earnings.

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