LAS VEGAS (Nov. 3, 2010) — Turbo Wholesale Tires Inc. is stretching the boundaries with its Lexani tire line, launching 23-series/28-inch and 30-series/30-inch fitments and promising more distinct sizes for the brand's niche customer base.
Irwindale, Calif.-based Turbo Wholesale controls the Lexani-brand through Lexani Tires Worldwide Inc., an affiliated enterprise.
The latest offerings—a 295/23R28 and 265/30R30—are two of six new sizes the company plans to have available by late this year or early in 2011, according to Aaron Tennison, vice president of sales for Lexani Tires. Others include 245/30R24, 225/30R22 and two others still in development, he said.
The new sizes undoubtedly are aimed at some narrow niche markets, Mr. Tennison acknowledged, but they serve to build the brand's image in the marketplace. The 265/30R30, for example, is geared almost exclusively for the extreme car customization niche, although it will fit the Cadillac Escalade, with modifications.
Some of the other new sizes are more mainstream and therefore broaden the market reach for the brand's distributors worldwide.
Turbo Wholesale acquired global distribution rights to the Lexani brand in January 2009 and has been rebuilding both the brand's product range and distribution network since, Mr. Tennison said. Lexani Wheel Corp. created the tire brand several years before that.
Lexani Tires Worldwide handles the tire's design and engineering and owns the molds, but the tires are produced in China by three manufacturers: Fullrun Tyre Tech Corp. Ltd., Shandong Yongtai Chemical Industry Group and South China Tire & Rubber Co. Ltd.
Turbo Wholesale moved its headquarters and main distribution business to a 300,000-sq.-ft. warehouse in Irwindale in early 2010 and is evaluating plans to add more locations on the West Coast. The company already operates satellite distribution centers in Los Angeles, San Diego and Orange County, Calif.