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INTERVIEW
Bandag Moving Forward with Bridgestone
Bridgestone’s takeover of Bandag placed the Bandag franchise operation in completely new territory in terms of how it could approach the market. For so long Bandag had been an independent franchising operation with no affiliation to any tyre manufacturer, and its strategy was widely multi-brand and so long as the casing was good then it could become a Bandag retread. In many ways that has not changed, Bandag franchisees can still retread any suitable casing but there is more of a focus on Bridgestone branded casings, and there is a developing strategy that gives the Bandag franchisees the opportunity to tie into the benefits of being part of the retreading network of the largest rubber manufacturer and one of the largest tyre manufacturers in the world. Accessing more and more Bridgestone serviced fleets should
unique selling points that make the Bandag franchise what it is. There is a 10 point quality programme linked to a rewards programme that focuses on the quality of the product, the strategic alignment of the dealership and their efforts to develop the Bandag business.
It is about promoting the brand, this
other common aspects. Dealers are now putting more money and effort into promoting the brand. We are seeing a wider recognition of the brand but it is the dealers who are making the first introductions.” The Alliance Excellence programme is a Europe only
strategy, other
markets will be
developing their
own, market
specific strategies
and adaptations.
Bandag now offers
a dual brand
package to its
franchises: the
premium quality
Bandag precure
tread and a budget
oriented Protread
by Bandag
product. This
allows the
retreader to
compete in the
budget sector of
the market,
according to
Janssens. Bandag
has wide
recognition across
Europe and we can
use that to build
the market share,
and Protread by
Bandag helps keep both dealers and end users loyal to the brand. “Europe is very competitive,” says Janssens, “we see a lot of movement at both ends of the market, but it is the mid market that is currently under pressure. Protread by Bandag allows our dealers to compete here and keep overall production costs down. Protread by Bandag should never become the dealer’s main brand as it is not the same quality as the Bandag premium products . Bandag has to remain the key focus for everyone, but Protread by Bandag has answered a need from the market.
“Last year saw the sales of new tyres increasing and retreading fell, but there has been a switch in the market and this year retread demand
is on the increase. The introduction of our new strategy is starting to have an effect. Our market share has been influenced positively since the start of the year.
“On the quality side of the business we have been introducing new treads to the European market. In January we opened our second European tread plant in Stargard, so we are committed to the market. In all our treads we can access the technology used in Bridgestone’s new tyres.
“In fact, we are launching the FuelTech pre-cure as the 2nd life of the Bridgestone Ecopia new tyre range. This will be produced at the Stargard plant. This is a new tread to Europe but it has been successful in partnership with the Ecopia range in the USA for some time. It offers a low rolling resistance tread. The
Steven Janssens
make the partnership still more worthwhile in the long run.
It has not been a quick turnaround and Bridgestone Bandag’s General Manager Retread Steven Janssens, admits that it has been an extended process putting everything in place, getting the right people in the right places and developing the support materials. “There have been considerable changes in the retread market and Bridgestone Bandag has to innovate to react to these changes and strengthen its market position. Bridgestone wants to grow the retread business and the solution is Bandag. Bandag offers its customers strengths and values that help build their business. It has been a process of integration since the acquisition and 2013 saw Bridgestone Bandag strengthen its relationships with its franchisees. Several important strategies were introduced. It was the year of delivery.
“The first of these was the Alliance Excellence quality programme. This focuses on the dealers and on the
is a key benefit to the franchisee. Behind this are other areas of strategy itemised in the Alliance Excellence handbook. The programme has been well received by top dealers who see it as a very positive improvement to the partnership.
“As a mark of the impact of the programme, we can say that we have never sold as much new equipment as we did last year as franchisees upgraded. We sold some 13 shearography machines in 2013.” Jeroen Lust, Senior Manager, Retread Business Development adds, “We had high expectations that we would see some interest but we did not expect such quick results. The strategy has been accepted by dealers even though they are facing challenges in the market.
“The advantage is that we can keep progressing it now that it has been accepted. We can adapt to reality and evolutions in strategy. It will make our dealers better and stronger.” Steven Janssens adds, “There are
FuelTech treads should be available towards the end of the first half of the year.”
FuelTech is one area where there is an obvious close link to Bridgestone. In what other ways do the Bridgestone and Bandag strategies come together? “There is a lot of focus on creating more synergies between the Bridgestone and Bandag dealer networks,” said Janssens. “It is our aim to make the Bandag retreads on customer owned casings available through all Bridgestone points of sale. Currently not all of the Bridgestone dealers operate a Bandag retread policy, that represents a great opportunity for the Bandag dealers to develop their business. I should add that in the mature markets in Europe we are not
14 Retreading Business