India's JK Tyre shifts strategy to focus on replacement market

ERJ staff report (TP)

Bangalore, India − With the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) business remaining flat for many tire makers in the wake of a slowdown in the auto sector, JK Tyre & Industries Ltd has begun to rely more on the replacement segment to gain market share, reported Anil Urs for The Hindu.

“We expect the replacement market to pick up on the back of a good monsoon and the country expecting good agricultural production,” VAJ Manikantan, Head-Sales (South & West), JK Tyre, said.

OEMs have cut down production at most of their plants to limit their losses, and with this changed scenario, JK Tyre has shifted its strategy to focus on the replacement market.

“This change in strategy has paid off. We have gained market share. Currently, we command about 30 percent share in the trucks and bus tires market,” said Manikantan.

“The company has been gaining market share in the replacement business for over a year. Now, we are investing substantially on the services side and to strengthen it,” he added.

The company is rolling out ‘JK Tyre Truck Wheels Centres’, which will be equipped with technically advanced equipment to provide solutions to all truck and bus tires and alignment-related needs.

“We plan to open 20 ‘Wheels Centres’. At present, we are have rolled out 12 centres and plan to ‘operationalise’ nine more by end of this fiscal,” Manikantan said.

The company opened its first centre in Bangalore last week.

The Wheels Centres-cum-showroom is spread over 8,000 sq ft (743 sq metres) and has a nitrogen inflator machine, air compressors, greasing pumps, pneumatic wrenches and a generator set to ensure end-to-end truck and bus tire care.

This is an external link and should open in a new window. If the window does not appear, please check your pop-up blocking software. ERJ is not responsible for the content of external sites.

Full story from The Hindu