Pep Boys President and CEO Jeff Rachor Resigns; Mike Odell Named Interim CEO, Ray Arthur Named CFO
Pep Boys has named Mike Odell, Pep Boys’ chief operating officer, as interim chief executive officer, effective immediately. The move was made after Jeff Rachor resigned to become a principal in an automotive dealership venture. Pep Boys also named Ray Arthur executive vice president – chief financial officer. Arthur is scheduled to begin on April 28. Rachor thanked the board and all of the associates for the privilege of working with them in developing and launching the company’s long-term strategic plan. “I know that Pep Boys is in extremely capable hands with Mike,” Jeff Rachor said. Rachor joined Pep Boys from Sonic Automotive in March 2007.
Friday, July 13, 2007
By Arianne Anderson The Week in Review offers a snapshot of the most read stories of the week as seen on aftermarketNews. To access the complete stories, simply click on the highlighted links. If you missed reading one of our daily news emails, click on any of the dates listed at the bottom of the
Two New Managers Added to Yokohama Tire Team
Yokohama Tire Corp. (YTC) has added two seasoned employees to its team: Gregg Vandermark has been named performance marketing manager and Rusty Taylor is the new manager of finance and administration, Business Division.
ACCC and CARQUEST Form Strategic Partnership and Launch MaxPak Program
American Car Care Centers Inc. (ACCC) and CARQUEST Auto Parts have formed a new strategic marketing partnership that will be marketed by ACCC as MaxPak. MaxPak will include training and education and an insurance offering, among other services. Set to launch Apr. 1, MaxPak will consist of two primary elements: ACCC University and a range of marketing and promotion offerings. ACCC University is a series of web-based, self-paced training modules, including nine non-technical courses, 10 ASE test-prep courses, two tech assessment classes, two other technical courses and more.
Kumho Names New Execs, Aims for Top Five by 2015
From Tire Review With the retirement of long-time chief Kyu Cho at the end of 2006, Kumho Tire Co. named two senior executives to head up its North American operations. B.K. Kim was named president and CEO of Kumho Tire North America, and Don Hun Ham was named president of Kumho Tire USA Inc. Kumho
Honeywell Responds to NAD Ruling on Universal Coolants
On Tuesday, aftermarketNews broke the news that the National Advertising Division (NAD) of the Better Business Bureau issued a recommendation that Honeywell Consumer Products Group discontinue its advertising that suggests its Prestone Extended Life Antifreeze/Coolant can be used in all makes and models of automobiles and light trucks and is compatible with all other antifreeze products. Today, in an exclusive interview, Michael Timmerman, VP of communications at Honeywell Transportation Systems and its Consumer Products Group, discusses the NAD ruling.
Repairing the Repair Image
Want to repair the industry’s less-than-perfect image? The solution starts every time you interact with a customer. As this year draws to a close, the urge to reminisce overcomes many folks, especially those of us in the media who feel our “unique” vantage point is valued. As such, you’re certain to be exposed to a multitude of recaps of everything that happened this year. Who are we to buck this trend?
DST Asks: How Do You View the Industry and Your Career?
Every automobile in every dealer’s showroom in America displays an EPA fuel economy ratings sticker. The ratings are estimates developed by the automakers after testing a limited number of pre-production vehicles. The EPA then verifies the results on roughly 10 to 15 percent of the vehicles produced for that year. The tests, repeated the same way each time in a controlled environment, are the same for all autos and are supposed to simulate city and highway driving conditions. They can’t – and don’t – reflect the conditions under which every vehicle is driven; nor do they reflect the maintenance condition, type of fuel used, or – perhaps most importantly-the variety of driving styles that we all see everyday on the streets. What do mileage ratings and driving styles have to do with your aftermarket career? Plenty.
Leadership for Change — Selecting Your Initiatives
Last time we kicked off a series of articles on the subject of leadership for change. We identified critical responsibilities for change leadership, and talked about creating a vision. This week we’ll talk about how to convert that vision into action-through selecting and launching the right initiatives.
DST Asks: Can Your Business Measure Return on Customer Investment?
Although most businesses have the means for measuring their Return On Investment, DST has coined the term Return on Customer Investment as a more accurate method of determining profitability of the customer base. Many firms believe that their largest customers, or the ones they have been supplying for the longest time, are the most profitable ones, but access to pertinent data can contradict those assumptions.