Falken Tire Corp. will be applying a sophisticated software system to analyze expansion of its dealer network while driving increased sales and pumping up the firm’s North American market share.
“Integrating our internal and industry data with the most current and accurate market data is crucial given the tough economic times when there’s so much churn in consumer demographics,” says Andrew Hoit, Falken’s marketing director.
“The tire industry is a competitive market with a diverse and complex demographic mix that varies widely depending on make, model, year, etc.,” explains Keith Peterson, senior vice president at TARGUSinfo, which is providing the Falken program.
The company’s dealers can gain a significant advantage by “having access to precise and frequently updated age, zip, income, gender and detailed predictive buying behaviors,” Peterson points out.
“With TARGUSinfo’s platform we can access the most up-to-date and robust market analysis to meet our strategic objective of identifying where we need to concentrate our growth,” says Hoit.
The patent-pending program presents demographic estimates and projections by employing constant updates from the U.S. Postal Service, according to Peterson, thus “ensuring that newly developed areas – or those in rapid decline – are clearly identified. Its unique approach to building demographics tracks actual neighborhood population shifts from the bottom up – using actual household counts.”
Market analysis systems relying on “outdated” U.S. Census-based data “can miss population shifts and increase the probability of poor site decisions,” Peterson continues, while the TARGUSinfo program provides the most current view via a series of reports covering demographics, consumer-segmentation data, shopping-center locations, consumer-expenditure and demand-potential data, business composition and locations plus competitive and “co-tenancy landscapes.”
The Site & Market Scoring system “allows organizations to expand and contract their retail networks with confidence,” says Peterson. “Organizations can leverage the solution for market prioritization, store-network optimization and retail site selection.”
Falken is subsidiary of Japan’s Sumitomo Rubber Industries, which was founded in 1983 and established a North American presence in 1985.
Although the company continues to focus on the ultra-high performance tire and wheel segments through aggressive motorsports participation, executives report that “future product development includes the expansion into rugged all-terrain, winter performance and premium touring categories.”
Headquartered in Fontana, Calif., where the main West Coast distribution center is located, Falken also has warehouses in Tennessee, New Jersey and Texas.
TARGUSinfo is based in Vienna, Va.
For more information, visit www.falkentire.com and www.targusinfo.com.
