Nokian Tyres plc could have 20 to 25 company-owned Vianor tire stores in the United States by the end of 2009. Nokian currently has nine Vianor outlets in the U.S.
They include six former Goss Tire stores in Vermont, plus the former Montouri Tire outlet in Fitchburg, Mass.; the former Phelps Tire store in Springfield, Vt.; and the former Concord Tire in Concord, N.H.
All have or will be converted to Nokian's Vianor format. (Nokian has more than 400 Vianor locations throughout Europe.)
Additional stores will most likely be concentrated in the Snow Belt region, says Terry Sheahan, who is supervising Vianor's expansion in the U.S.
"It's a function of developing areas where (we don't have) distribution."
For more about Nokian's plans for Vianor in the U.S., see the October 2008 edition of Modern Tire Dealer, available now.
