Portland, Ore.-based distribution network Northwest Tire Factory LLC has added several new dealers over the past few months.
The group has signed shops in Mile City and Cut Bank, Mont., St. George and North Logan, Utah, and Ocean Shores, Wash. -- "mostly mid-size guys," says Northwest Tire Factory CEO Nick Hodel. "They're good, clean operations."
Northwest Tire Factory board members will discuss new additions when they meet tomorrow.
Northwest Tire Factory also recently spent $500,000 to re-pallatize its 120,000-square-foot distribution center in Portland. "We narrowed the aisles down to nine feet," Hodel says, which boosted available storage space by 35%.
And the group is installing a new computer system at the facility that should be up and running by next month.
With more than 140 members, Northwest Tire Factory is the ninth largest tire distribution network in North America, according to Modern Tire Dealer data.
In addition to Montana, Washington and Utah, it has dealers in Oregon, California, Idaho, Colorado, Nevada, Wyoming and Alaska, where it added three shops last March.
