Marketing groups continue to expand locations, services

AKRON — Marketing groups — both independent and tire manufacturer-supported — continue to gain converts, and clout, throughout North America as independent tire retailers keep looking for that competitive advantage in the marketplace.

At the same time, a growing number of traditional auto service franchises — think Meineke or Midas — are expanding the tires and related services portion of their business model and becoming serious players in the tire aftermarket.

The Midas auto repair business, a TBC Corp. brand since 2012, has been morphing steadily into a more tire-oriented retailer the past 18 months or so under TBC's guidance.

Midas locations "will look like tire locations, associates will be tire-service experts and the Midas brand will become known as a destination for tires in the same way that we are known for brakes, repairs and exhaust," TBC stated a year ago.

Since then, the Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.-based company has negotiated a deal with Michelin North America Inc. to allow Midas franchisees to offer Michelin-brand tires at the 1,000-plus Midas locations in the U.S.

Looking for growth

Likewise Meineke Car Care Centers' owner Driven Brands Inc. has strengthened its tire supply relationships as it also drives toward 1,000 locations across the U.S.

Among groups, whose members operate under common signage, that are expanding their scope beyond market growth are: Point S in the U.S. and Canada; Tire Pros; RNR Tire Express; Meineke Car Care Centers; and Mr. Tire/Big3 Tire, according to data collected by Tire Business.

The marketing groups landscape has changed somewhat recently as a number of auto service-related groups changed hands, including:

• SpeeDee Oil Change & Auto Service: TBC sold the Speedee franchise business — which it acquired in 2012 as part of its purchase of Midas International — to Grease Monkey International L.L.C.

Greenwood, Colo.-based Grease Monkey — considered one of the nation's largest independent franchisors of automotive fast lube centers, with more than 220 centers in the U.S. — gained 100-plus franchised SpeeDee-branded shops across the U.S., predominantly in California, Texas, the Gulf Coast, the Mid-Atlantic and New England.

Grease Monkey President & CEO John B. Adams, a former TBC executive, said his company's team is "eager to begin working with franchisees to leverage current relationships, further establish the brand in existing markets and expand horizons in areas yet to be explored."

• Precison Tune Auto Care: Icahn Enterprises L.P. has acquired Precision Auto Care Inc., a franchising enterprise with more than 250 franchised and company-owned Precision Tune Auto Care-branded retail locations throughout the U.S., to go with its 1,000-outlet-strong Pep Boys and AutoParts Plus network.

Sticking with Precision

Icahn Enterprises said it plans to continue using the Precision Tune name for the acquired stores and is looking forward to working with the enterprise's franchise owners to grow the brand.

"The acquisition of Precision Auto Care…is the next step in building out our national automotive service network," said Daniel A. Ninivaggi, CEO of Icahn Automotive Group L.L.C., the entity overseeing Icahn Enterprises' automotive aftermarket interests.

Of the roughly 250 Precision Tune Auto Care centers in operation in the U.S., 43 are owned by Precision Auto Care, according to the firm's financial filings. There are approximately 65 more locations outside the U.S., including five in Mexico.

One franchising entity that hasn't grown in the past couple of years is the Car-X Tire & Auto Service business acquired by Monro Muffler Brake Inc. in April 2015.

Since then, Monro has acquired 30 franchised Car-X locations from their owners and continues to operate them under the Car-X identity. As a result, the number of independently operated Car-X outlets has dropped to 113 from 146 when Monro bought the business from Tuffy Associates Corp.

The acquired locations represent five separate transactions, the largest of which was Monro's purchase of 16 Car-X stores in Illinois and Iowa earlier this year from Nona Inc. and its founder Parham Parastaran, who said the timing and buyout offer from Monro were simply right to sell the business his father founded in the 1980s. He continues to operate other businesses his family is involved in.

Other Car-X transactions include:

• One store in Indiana from NTI L.L.C. and four stores in Minnesota from Task Holdings Inc. and Autopar Inc. in July 2016;

• Three stores in Illinois and Indiana from an unnamed Car-X franchisee during fiscal 2016; and

• Four stores in Wisconsin from McMar Inc. in December 2015.

Additionally:

Mobile tire servicing proponent Go Tire Inc. has revamped its strategy and has stopped offering franchises under its original franchising model. Instead the company's management has developed a partnership model with some existing franchisees and has bought out a few others, according to Craig Howes, president.

Go Tire also is planning to raise new capital to boost the number of mobile-fitting vans beyond the current fleet of 15-plus vans in the corporate partnership.

"Naturally, a change in the corporate direction was hard for some of our original franchisees," Mr. Howes said, "so in fairness we provided an option for the early release of their contracts. That said, by spring/summer of 2018, we anticipate we will double, or better, the top number of vans we've ever had. Our growth rate beyond that will be very aggressive."

Go Tire has sought input from its new partners to redesign its franchising model to make it possible for a new franchisee to achieve success much earlier in the lifespan of its business as a Go Tire dealer, Mr. Howes added.

The company plans to add an "Elite franchise" model for those wanting to buy in as multi-unit operators.

Go Tire anticipates relaunching a business plan for the U.S. market by next year. The ultimate goal is to have 100 vans in service throughout North America.

Also in Canada, Montreal-based Groupe Touchette, the self-proclaimed largest wholesale distributor in Canada, operates a pair of marketing programs for customers — Tireland and Tire Partners — but the company said the programs are under review following the arrival of new leadership in the marketing department and therefore opted not to participate in this year's survey process.