Stapleton’s: “More 4×4 [tyres] by far”
There was a time when four-wheel drive vehicles were direct descendants of hard-nosed ‘working’ and agricultural vehicles – so the choice of suitable tyres was pretty straightforward. These days, though, drivers are faced with what can be a bewildering array of specialist tyres for specific types of 4×4 and SUV – and for an ever-widening range of applications – which makes it challenging for the retailer to stock the answer to every request they’re likely to hear from their 4×4 customers. Stapleton’s seeks to answer these questions with what it describes as one of the widest ranges of on and off-road 4×4 tyres available.
Voted TAFF Wholesaler of the Year for the second year running in 2011, Stapleton’s is the UK’s largest tyre distributor with a nationwide stockholding of some 1,200,000 tyres. This includes 4×4 offerings from all premium brands you have heard of including: Bridgestone, Continental, Dunlop, Goodyear, Pirelli and Michelin. But, as Stapleton’s head of range planning and marketing Stephen Childs points out: “Our growing collection of exclusive and private brands is particularly attractive to retailers keen to offer their own customers a tyre for any 4×4 on – or off – the road. Between the Matador, Nexen, and, most recently, Maxxis ranges, retailers are safe in the knowledge that Stapleton’s will stock the tyre they need – when they need it.”
Matador, for example, covers more than 85 per cent of the 4×4 market with its four tread patterns in 40 sizes, with the Izzarda and Wisentta, designed for the most challenging off-road applications, and the Conquerra and Hectorra UHP ranges for optimum 4×4 performance on the road.
Maxxis, the most recent addition to the Stapleton’s stable, comes with an established motorsports and off-roading pedigree and, as you might expect, each of these products adapts and incorporates the rugged design and competition inspired production values. According to the company, the MAS1 Marauder, for example, offers optimum performance and superior traction in wet or snowy conditions. By way of contrast, the AT771, which is due to hit the streets (or rather the mud) this April, combines a modern tread pattern and stiff carcass for excellent all-terrain wet traction and hydroplaning resistance with superb off-road handling. It’s the hard-core MT754 Buckshot Mudder, though, that really takes the term ‘all mud terrain’ at face value with its rugged, aggressive pattern, high tech rubber compound and self-cleaning lugs for maximum traction.
Finally, Stapleton’s representatives suggest that Nexen’s Roadian range of 4×4 tyres is “perhaps the most comprehensive of all with 60 sizes covering every application from road driving to full-on mud-terrain.”
“In line with our ‘working for the customer’ philosophy, we’re constantly looking for new ways to give our customers the edge,” Stephen Childs continued, adding: “So we back up that expanded 4×4 range with a key dealer programme attached to each of these private brands, which offer a range of valuable benefits such as personalised reward schemes, preferential purchase prices and in-store support in the form of leaflets, posters and lifetime guarantees on products. It’s a great way to preserve retailers’ margins even as customers economise on their tyre spending.”
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