NEWSInaugural Tyre Industry Awards Finalists Announced

Tyre and Aftermarket Supplier of the Year Award: Previous year’s finalists Autogem Invicta Ltd, Apaseal Ltd and Rema Tip Top Automotive UK Ltd are joined by Apaseal (NI) Ltd, Tyre Bay Direct Ltd and Tyres on the Drive.com, which means six finalists for this category too.

Industry Marketing Campaign of the Year Award - Sponsored by Singex-ECi: This award highlights some of the most innovative approaches to advertising and product marketing, whether on TV, radio, social media or traditional print media. Last year’s winner Infinity Tyre Europe features once again alongside previous finalists Goodyear (Efficient Grip), Michelin (Primacy), Pirelli Tyres Ltd (Engineered to Excite) and is joined by Continental (World Cup) and Tyres on the Drive.com

Unlike the TAFF Awards the Tyre Industry Awards does not feature an Environment Award or an Innovation Award. There is, however, a brand new award dedicated to those companies that promote Continuous Professional Development. The Staff Training and Development Initiative of the Year Award – sponsored by West Lake has a new line-up of finalists for voters to look at, namely: Autogem Invicta Ltd, Bridgestone (UK) Ltd, Michelin Tyre Plc., Pirelli Tyres Ltd and Tructyre Fleet Management Ltd. All of these companies either offer training and development routes for their own personnel, industry wide training solutions, or both.

Tyre Retail Centre of the Year Award – sponsored by Pirelli Tyres Ltd: Finally, we come to the Award that recognises and rewards the very best in tyre retailing. Carried over from the TAFF awards, this is the fourth year that this award will be presented.

A huge number of nominations have been received for member depots from all over the UK and it seems everybody would like to follow last year’s winner, National Tyres and Autocare, Falkirk, in stepping up to the podium to receive the accolade of being the best tyre retail centre in the UK.

The companies/depots on the short list will be scrutinised and independently mystery shopped over the next three months and the winner announced, along with all the other award winners in a ceremony hosted by the Rt. Hon. Michael Portillo and sponsored by Continental Tyre Group Ltd at the 85th NTDA Annual Dinner, which is being held at the Hilton Deansgate, Manchester on Wednesday 8th October 2014.

That’s a little less than four months, so please get behind your suppliers, industry partners and favourite brands and support them with your vote. Remember you can only vote online and votes must be entered by Friday 19th September 2014.

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After three exciting months of receiving the nominations from industry, the NTDA

can finally announce the finalists for the first Tyre

Industry Awards. Since announcing the changes

to the awards evening format, a tremendous interest has been shown, from sponsors, nominees and attendees alike and the 85th Annual Dinner sponsored by Zenises (Z) is set to be a sell-out.

As with the final TAFF Awards in 2013, there is no postal voting and the only way to make your opinion count is via the NTDA website at: http://www.ntda.co.uk/2014-taff-awards-online-voting-form/ and all online votes must be entered by Friday 19th September 2014. Both NTDA members and non-members are eligible to vote.

2014 has seen a fierce contest for the final shortlists with many ‘familiar faces’ joined by some new-comers and there have been many genuine surprises in some categories with previous winners failing to receive nominations in categories they have previously dominated! So who received the most nominations and who are your 2014 finalists?

Tyre Manufacturer of the Year Award – sponsored by BlueSky Pensions: Last year’s finalists Apollo Vredestein (UK) Ltd, Bridgestone UK Ltd, Continental Tyre Group Ltd and Goodyear Dunlop Tyres UK Ltd have been joined by Pirelli Tyres Ltd and a ‘new kid on the block’ Hankook Tyre (UK) Ltd. This was a very popular category and this year we have six finalists due to an equal number of nominations being received for two companies in fifth place.

Tyre Wholesaler of the Year Award – sponsored by Goodyear Dunlop Tyres UK: A real shake up in this category with last year’s finalists Group Tyre (UK) Ltd, Micheldever Tyre Services Ltd and Stapleton’s (Tyre Services) Ltd being joined by Malvern Tyres Group and We Sell Tyres.

www.ntda.co.uk NEWSNTDA Director calls members to action – “Your Region needs you!”

There can be no doubt, that the digital economy has created a need for tyre retailers and their suppliers to change the way they communicate and do business and the NTDA, in representing the interests of, and in better promoting, its diverse membership, is no different and has recently very notably embraced a whole range of media platforms.

A new website, Apps for iPhone and Android, a dedicated LinkedIn group, an active Twitter presence (@TyresNTDA) and closer working relationships with the automotive trade media means, that we have not only enhanced our online presence and digital footprint, but we are also able to share the latest industry and Association news almost instantaneously.

Feedback on our online activity has been terrific, both from members and other industry professionals alike and interest in membership over the past three months has increased with frequent enquiries now being received via the new website and LinkedIn group.

A strong communication strategy and regular communication outputs are essential to the success of any effective trade association, but the most important thing about trade associations are the members and ensuring they receive tangible benefits from their membership and one vital tangible benefit remains networking opportunities.

The NTDA, like many long-standing trade associations, was built on a network of enthusiastic, passionate and innovative tyre industry professionals who established a regional infrastructure that saw the Association grow to hundreds of companies representing thousands of depots across the whole of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The growth in supplier membership meant, that the NTDA could soon also boast a healthy manufacturer, wholesaler and diverse range of other memberships too.

Since 1930 members have met on a regular basis and by acting together the sector developed faster, was more productive and worked in unison to tackle common marketplace problems.

This work continues and the association still has a healthy membership but sadly, over recent years, often due to acquisitions, mergers and retirement, many of the regions have become inactive, but ask any retailer or supplier and they will tell you that ‘in-person’ networking remains an essential component of doing business.

The NTDA Regions provide one of the best ‘in-person’ networking platforms in the tyre industry. It’s so obvious! Regional meetings offer the chance to connect with others in the tyre business. Members can learn from others in the industry and can even create local alliances or partnerships

which enables them to expand the reach of their businesses. Regional meetings also offer a bridge to communicate with competitors and discuss key issues such as the growth of illegal part worn tyres, EU labelling, general market trends, business services and much more in a collaborative environment.

I also believe, that the most professional and successful entrepreneurs aren’t afraid to network with competitors and the NTDA Regions also offer a great opportunity to do this, in social environments such as the North West and North Wales Region’s Annual Winter Ball in Blackpool in November or the many events organised by the very active NTDA Region in Northern Ireland. Not forgetting the National events such as the Golf Day, Annual Dinner and Tyre Industry Awards and Brityrex.

That’s why your NTDA Region needs you! As the new Director, I would like to develop a strong network of Regional Chairpersons and Regional Secretaries. Working together we can organise local meetings and seminars and attract excellent industry, Government and other speakers to address members on key topics, (I already have lots of volunteers to speak!), organise social events and much more.

These events can also be used for new member recruitment, because the more new members we bring in the more viable the regions become and the more active the regions become, the more members we will attract as potential members will see more NTDA presence on the ground locally.

The Chairpersons in our active regions agree that regular regional meetings are essential: Dasos Michaelides General Manager of Donnelly Group and Chairman of Northern Ireland Region recently said: “We have achieved so much together in Northern Ireland and have had major successes with our Tyre Safety campaigns and other initiatives, we have even started working with our colleagues at the ITIA in the Irish Republic and this year will run an all-Ireland wide tyre safety campaign in October, involving industry, the PSNI and the Gardaí”.

Bridget Urch, (pictured) of Uniroyal Truck Tyres and Chairperson of the North West and North Wales Region added: “Regular networking is of vital importance because it gives members the opportunity to discuss their business problems and find a solution from others experiences also, to discover what changes are taking place within the industry”.

So if you want to play an active role in the NTDA and make a genuine difference to both the NTDA and the industry, then why not join Dasos and Bridget and become a Regional Chairperson, Regional Secretary or just get more involved by offering meeting facilities or ideas for speakers, I’d love to hear from you. stefanhay@ntda.co.uk