Tyrestore - generation ahead in tyre service
Siremull Hirachand’s Tyrestore, popularly know as Tyrestore, the 60-year old multi-brand tyre dealer based on Greams Road, in Chennai, is one of the oldest organised tyre retailers in India. “We have been keeping our business simple by offering the best quality products and services. Tyrestore has always strived to be a generation ahead in tyre service,” T. Loon Chand Chordia, CEO, Tyrestore, told Auto Components India.
He said Tyrestore has been investing in the best equipment to serve the tyre needs of customers. The company deals with Indian and imported tyres, alloy wheels, automotive batteries, air filters and car accessories. The services include wheel alignment, wheel balancing, tyre rotation, run-flat tyre fitting, nitrogen inflation, and tubeless tyre repair. Tyrestore was the first tyre dealer to introduce nitrogen inflation commercially 10 years ago. Recently Michelin has chosen Tyrestore as its priority partner in Chennai.
When business was different
In the 1950s, with only very limited number of tyre retailers, business was different, Chordia recalls. Then there were only mainly 3 brands of cars, Fiat, Standard and Ambassador, and a few Plymouths. Similarly, there were only 3 brands of tyres: Dunlop, Good Year and Firestone. With only a few players in the tyre retail and service segment, margins were good, he said.
Tyrestore was supplying tyres for cars, trucks, buses and tractors to a wide range of customers drawn from all over South India. From Chennai, then Madras, the main customers were commercial establishments and companies like TVS Group and Murugappa Group. Among the very important customers was M G Ramachandran, fondly called as MGR, from his cinema days. “Even after MGR became Chief Minister, Tyrestore was supplying tyres to him. MGR used to be good pay master,” Chordia said. Tyrestore did not entertain many from the cine field as often payment was an issue.
Market changes
Currently there are many brands of cars and tyres, and also a large number of dealers and service providers. Market is very loose and competition is very tight. In 1972 the company recorded a turnover of Rs 1.5 crore. It went up to Rs 15 crore in early 1990s, but now it has dipped to Rs 7 crore, in spite of the drastic fall in the value of rupee, rues Chordia.
He said, of late the tyre retail and service business has taken a downturn as there are many dealers and retailers. “Following the FMCG model, the tyre manufactures have started appointing many dealers and this puts the business at stake and hits the dealer network a lot. People like me who have a legacy has made big investments and now we face stiff competition from the new entrants. Too many dealers swarm the market,” he said.
According to Chordia, “The B2C segment is a little challenging and it is driven by the hospitality in service and the interpersonal relations with the customers. We have more than 2000
customers. Our major strength is the German machines we use for the tyre fitment, the repair workshop equipments and the ‘Ravaglioli’ machines for tyre changing. The process is hasslefree now and we can complete the work in a matter of seconds. The problem, he said, was that the returns were not equal to the investments made on these machines.”
Chordia said survival was difficult by doing only tyre business. He has started selling value-added products to the customers. Now Tyrestore offers wide range of tyre and tyrerelated products, riding gears, cars and bikes accessories, tyre polish, car body wash, cleaning products, and other components. The plan is to be one-stop solution to its customers. By 2020, the market will have several technology innovations which would open new paths for us, Chordia said.
The Goods and Service Tax (GST) seems to be luring. But it will show its pros and cons only after a period of implementation. Though 150 countries have GST implemented, India needs to support ‘transparency’ to a large extent which is a major catch for the unorganised market. Chordia said tyre trade has been taken over by the large number of unorganised players. This is just a ‘wait and see’ phase.
The 3M model
Chordia said the retail industry worked on the 3M model - Man, Money and Machines. Four equipments are needed for tyre fitting, and for wheel balancing different machines are used. “We are upgrading the machines according to the market standards and trends. This drives our business unhindered in spite of the prevailing competitions,” he said.
Tyrestore works with Indian subsidiaries of multinationals like Michelin, Yokohama, Continental, Goodyear, Bridgestone, and Pirelli. All these companies invite Chordia for participatory discussions and his inputs are given value and the same is considered in their subsequent operations. “As we are in the market, we could sense easily the customer needs and provide feedback to the manufacturers and accordingly they implement their design standards,” Chordia said.
Tyrestore also sells Chinese tyres as they are cheap and attract more customers. The quality of the product is good. These tyres are available at various price levels to suit the customers’ finances. For example, if an Indian tyre costs Rs 5000, the similar product is available for Rs 2500 in Chinese brand, which attracts fleet operators. Tyrestore feels that doing business in the current scenario is tough, but it is still surviving because of the quality service and by providing value added products to its customers.