R. L. Polk & Co.’s Ask the Industry: The Value of New Vehicle Information for Product and Inventory Planning
Every year, there are more than 100 new vehicle launches and changes that significantly affect the landscape of the automotive industry. What impact do these new vehicles have on your company and the industry? How important is receiving timely new vehicle information to your product and inventory planning? These questions were asked of AMN readers and aftermarket executives working within various segments of the automotive aftermarket – including warehouse distribution, manufacturing and collision repair. And, what stands out most among all the comments were heard is the emphasis on the need for timely information.
GUEST EDITORIAL: NGK Director Michael Schwab Responds to “A Missed Opportunity”
The following guest editorial comes from Michael Schwab, director for NGK Spark Plugs USA, Inc. He writes the following letter in response to another recently published guest editorial authored by Fred Meyers, titled “A Missed Opportunity,” which addressed Meyers opinions on the value of aftermarket manufacturers’ brands in the technicians mind.
Executive Interview with Rusty Bishop, CEO of Federated Auto Parts
In this week’s Executive Interview, we hear from Rusty Bishop, CEO of Federated Auto Parts. Read on to learn more about Federated’s recent spike in membership, and Bishop’s thoughts on such issues as consolidation, branding and sourcing product from overseas.
GUEST COMMENTARY: A Missed Opportunity
The following guest commentary was written by Fred Meyers, founder and CEO of One Stop Parts Source in California, Denver and Dallas. Meyers, a panelist at the 2008 Global Automotive Aftermarket Symposium in Chicago, feels there was a golden opportunity that he missed while speaking at the event. Today, he shares with AMN what that is.
Polk Survey: How Important is New Vehicle Information for Your Product and Inventory Planning?
Posted: May 28, 2008 For our next edition of R. L. Polk & Co.’s Ask the Industry, we will look at the role that new vehicle information plays in p rod uct and inventory planning. Every year, there are more than 100 new vehicle launches and changes that significantly affect the landscape of the automotive
Executive Interview with Tom Perry, President of U.S. Chemical & Plastics
A lot of exciting things have been going on with U.S. Chemical & Plastics lately. Tom Perry was recently promoted from vice president, sales & marketing to president, and the company also earned the prestigious ISO 9001:2000 certification. The editorial staffs of aftermarketNews and BodyShop Business spoke with Perry, a 24-year industry veteran, about the latest developments at U.S. Chemical & Plastics.
R. L. Polk & Co.’s Ask the Industry: How Important is New Vehicle Information for Your Product and Inventory Planning?
For our next edition of R. L. Polk & Co.’s Ask the Industry, we will look at the role that new vehicle information plays in product and inventory planning. Every year, there are more than 100 new vehicle launches and changes that significantly affect the landscape of the automotive industry.In the ever-changing environment that is the automotive aftermarket, what impact do these new vehicles have on your company and the industry?
Executive Interview with David Mestdagh, Director, North American Aftermarket Business, Continental Automotive Systems
David Mestdagh is director of North American aftermarket business for Continental Automotive Systems. He is responsible for overall business strategy, product quality, and performance; as well as development of effective sales and marketing activities in North America for the Continental, ATE, and VDO brand of products. Join us as Mestdagh brings us up to speed on Continental’s plans for the future, following last year’s acquisition of Siemens VDO.
Executive Interview with Chris Ferraro, President, CEO and Co-Founder of Voodoo Ride
Christopher Ferraro is president and CEO of vehicle appearance products company Voodoo Ride, which he co-founded last year with Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Ferraro brings experience in the appearance p rod ucts category to the company, having served as president/CEO of VentureBrands, LLC, a marine and automotive surface care company. Join us as Ferraro shares how he came to found the car care products company with racing star Earnhardt, and what he thinks makes Voodoo Ride stand out from the crowd.
Executive Interview: O’Reilly Automotive CEO Greg Henslee Talks about the Recent Acquisition of CSK Auto
On Tuesday it was announced that O’Reilly Automotive signed a definitive merger agreement with CSK Auto Corp., to acquire the company for approximately $1 billion. Shortly following the announcement, O’Reilly CEO Greg Henslee shared with aftermarketNews some preliminary details of this important acquisition.
R. L. Polk & Co.’s Ask the Industry: What’s in Store for the Aftermarket in ’08
For this week’s Ask the Industry, we gather insights and predictions from leading industry experts and analysts, to provide an overview of some of the industry’s biggest concerns right now, and how the aftermarket is expected to perform in 2008.
Executive Interview with Tak Ito, Executive Vice President of GMB
This week we hear from Tak Ito, executive vice president of GMB. Ito joined the GMB corporate office in Japan in 1987 and transferred to GMB North America as the assistant manger. In 1990, he moved to GMB California as sales account executive, where he was responsible for the development of sales for those companies that import directly from GMB factories. In 1997, Ito moved to GMB New Jersey as managing director. In 2007, he was given responsibility for leading the company’s sales and service teams in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, including the OES and the aftermarket.