Apollo Tires has entered the truck-bus tire segment in the U.S. and Canada market with a full range of regional, super-regional, coach/urban and mixed-use applications with fitments for rims ranging from 17.5 inches to 24.5 inches. 13 SKUs are planned for this year, which will be expanded to 23 SKUs by 2nd half of 2022, and a total of 45 SKUs covering 90% of the marketplace by 2024.
“Apollo may be a new name in the US and Canada, but we are not a new company. Our market entry in North America is preceded by decades of global commercial vehicle tire manufacturing and distribution expertise”, said Abhishek Bisht, Assistant Vice President, Americas, Apollo Tires. “We come to market positioned to make an immediate impact by offering a tier I value proposition at a more attractive price, while setting new industry standards for service and support.”
“Our R&D efforts made it clear that a successful North American dealer strategy had to be based on transparency,” said Bisht. “Our commercial dealers are trusted customers and partners, and we will not compete with them by selling directly to fleets. Our focus is on empowering our dealers to deliver best-in-class value, service and support to their commercial clients.
Before the launch, the tires were put into test fleet service with a US waste-removal/ haulage operation to benchmark against Tier I competition across multiple retread cycles under punishing daily use. The results demonstrated the quality levels and performance consistency of Apollo’s tires that easily meet or exceed the typical service requirements of the North American fleet customer while delivering outstanding value in terms of total ownership cost across the tire’s lifespan.
Apollo dealers in North America will have contractually guaranteed exclusive sales territories. A single invoice-pricing structure for the entire dealer network will further level the playing field, with volumes bonuses that reward sales performance.
“This is a thrilling moment in our company’s history that will let us showcase the breadth and depth of our capabilities in one of the largest, most diverse and most demanding commercial markets in the world,” said Abhishek. “We know that we have the people, products and passion to go the distance for our dealers and their clients. Like them, we are in this for the long haul.
