Apollo Tyres has announced its debut in the highly competitive Truck and Bus Radial (TBR) tyre segment in Europe, and has also become the first and only manufacturer to launch its TBR range exclusively online, with a new go-to-market approach. 

Apollo Tyres, for whom TBRs constitute almost half of its production output and which has 25 percent of the TBR market in India, has six manufacturing plants globally, including a brand new, state-of-the-art factory in Hungary (opened earlier this month), along with four R&D centres spread around the world. 

“Quality, reliability and performance are central to Apollo Tyres’ philosophy. The company benchmarks against the best in the market and, often, outperforms them,” says chief retail & marketing officer, Marco Paracciani. “However, for the European TBR market, we felt that a strong product offering was not enough as we saw an opportunity to innovate in the go-to-market approach.” 

Innovative approach
Apollo’s aim to establish itself as a radial truck tyre technology leader in Europe is supported by its innovative approach to the market. Unique among tyre manufacturers, its products are exclusively available through an online platform – ApolloTyresDirect.com – directly from Apollo, where pricing is completely transparent, with no hidden costs or complicated deals. Stripped of all unnecessary ancillary expenses, customers (whether dealers, large or small fleets, or owner-operators) can choose the service they prefer, and only pay for what they need. Paracciani explains: “Thanks to our cutting-edge business model, we can offer performance tyres at cost-effective prices.” 

“This launch is the culmination of our five-year testing and development programme for the Apollo brand of truck-bus radials in the UK and Europe,” says Benoit Rivallant, Apollo Tyres’ Group head of global product management for commercial vehicles. “The new range was designed for Europe and extensively tested over 250 million kilometres across six European countries, in a wide range of applications, by around 50 fleets and driver partners.” 

“Streamlining the process was paramount to the success of this project,” continues Rivallant. “We are finding new ways to provide premium tyres how and when our customers need them, whether directly to the end user or providing new service opportunities for dealers. And of course, even though we are completely online, our Customer Service teams are always available to help customers, wherever they may be.”

Apollo Tyres pilots the delivery of its new TBR European tyre range in UK, Ireland, Belgium and the Netherlands, with Germany and other countries soon to follow. However, countries currently outside the scope of delivery, can take advantage of the cost-effective pricing at ApolloTyresDirect.com by arranging collection from Apollo’s Hamburg warehouse. 

To find out more about Apollo Tyres’ new TBR range, and the brand new online platform, visit stand C80, Hall 3, at the Commercial Vehicle Show, NEC, Birmingham, 25-27 April.