February 28, 2010
MATDA is proactive for the sake of its dealers
By: Bob Ulrich
The Mid-America Tire Dealers Association, a Kansas-based trade organization, is not waiting for the economy to turn before it springs into action. In an effort to grow and become stronger -- especially politically -- it is actively seeking members from two surrounding states: Oklahoma and Nebraska.
Already one of the strongest tire dealer associations in the country with close to 180 members, the "MATDA" has been a force for its members in Kansas for a long time. For example, recent lobbying efforts have drastically reduced taxes on tires that were being proposed without media attention.
When the MATDA heard about it, Executive Director Shawn Herrick and the gang jumped into action to prevent a real profitability killer to independent tire dealers across the state. Actually, their efforts helped all dealers in the tire distribution channel.
Now the association is trying to help dealers outside Kansas. For the first time in almost 20 years, the annual MATDA Convention and Trade Show was held in another state. The Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Catoosa, Okla., was the site of the 19th annual event. And Oklahoma dealers showed their support, making the convention a success.
The MATDA will hold its 2012 convention and trade show in Nebraska.
To give you an idea of what association events are all about, here's some of what went on in Catoosa:
* ATS Technical Training. The certification program developed by the Tire Industry Association was taught by Joe Unrein and Greg Albright of Becker Tire & Treading Inc. Joe handled the written portion, while Gary and Joe supervised the hands-on portion. Both work for Becker Tire, which sponsored the training.
* Cash Flow Analysis. Norm Gaither of the Twenty Group talked about bottom line profitability not once but twice. He also co-moderated a round table discussion on 20 Groups, a concept that gathers non-competing dealers in groups of up to 20 to share ideas and business models and determine financial benchmarks. The dealers meet semi-regularly. Gaither says that by next year, his company may be running up to seven 20 groups.
* OSHA Compliance Issues. The seminar speaker was Jason Hudson of the Oklahoma Department of Labor. He talked about 0SHA 1910.177, "the part of the regulation dealing with tire service and inflation," said George Hoellen, president of T.O. Haas Tire in Lincoln, Neb. The Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska Departments of Labor offer consulting services to help dealers with becoming OSHA-compliant, he added.
* Online Marketing and Navigating. Larry Holser with TireWebsite.com not only offered up advice to stay abreast of technology, but also offered to help attendees without Web sites to get started -- free of charge. Holser's family runs a tire dealership in California.
There also were seminars with procative names like "Outsource the Employer Function to Control Costs & Reduce Liability" and "Managing the 1%." Other topics focused on insurance, tax issues, truck tire fuel efficiency, phone sales and high performance tires.
Regional tire distributors and equipment suppliers filled out the trade show. One company promoted a tire I hadn't heard of: the Atrezzo SH402. The tire is made in China by Sailun Co. Ltd., and the Hesselbein Tire Co. Inc. representative told me that his company and Sailun worked together to help offset the tariffs for the retailer's sake. "It will be a big help" when the tariff drops from 39% to 34% on Sept. 26, he added.
The MATDA is not the only successful state or regional tire dealer association. If you are not a member of one that represents you, consider joining. Like the MATDA, be proactive.
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