CINCINNATI—Tire Discounters plans to take its “store of the future” design to the next level, committing to remodel up to 40 of its 80-plus locations in the next four years using customer-centric elements of the new store design in the renovation process.
Tire Discounters did not quantify how much it's budgeting for the project, but it did say it plans to integrate the new design's comfort, transparency and efficiency aspects into the remodeled stores' look.
The Cincinnati-based dealership has remodeled two stores—in Cin-cinnati-Eastgate and Troy, Ohio—since opening its first two new-design stores, in Colerain Township in northwestern metro Cincinnati.
“We've had incredible feedback from our customers about our new store design,” said Jamie Ward, executive vice president. “Tire Discounters plans to make the updates throughout our footprint so we can provide all of our customers this revolutionary store experience, while continuing to deliver the superior customer service they've come to expect.”
Tire Discounters calls its major remodelings “scrape and rebuild” projects. It strives to keep business interruption to a minumum and will relocate employees and redirect customers to other nearby stores when it's necessary to close a store temporarily.
In the remodeling process, Tire Discounters said it is focusing on comfort, transparency and efficiency while keeping the use of eco-friendly materials and energy-efficient technology at the forefront.
Among the features being incorporated: video feeds from service bays to waiting rooms; drive-through bays with ergonomically placed equipment; clock display in the waiting room; and replacing service counters with technicians' using individual tablets.
Tire Discounters operates 87 locations in Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio, including two new-format stores opened recently on the east side of Cincinnati. The newest stores are Tire Discounters' 30th and 31st in the greater Cincinnati area.
Both new stores have roughly 10 employees and feature multiple drive-through service bays. The dealership has plans for a dozen more new stores for the next year.