Ultra-high performance (UHP) vehicle owners are
a different breed, according to Craig Dobrin, vice
president of operations at Atlanta, Ga.-based Butler
Tires and Wheels, which specializes in UHP tire and
custom wheel sales.
“Their currency is time, rather than money.”
To sell a set of UHP tires to these time-pressed customers, you
first need to have the tire in stock - or at least nearby, says Dobrin.
Asking the owner of a $200,000 car to park it at a store for
three to four days while a salesman orders a new set of tires
will demonstrate that “you clearly don’t have a specialty in this
arena,” he asserts.
“When you’re dealing with a true UHP customer - when we’re
talking with European sports car (owners) in the $200,000 or
north vehicle market these (clients) have wants,” he continues.
“They don’t necessarily have needs.
“They’re driving that car because they want the absolute best
luxury experience.
“They want the best possible product on their vehicle and they
want the most qualified individual to work on it.
“And they want somebody who’s going to do the job right the
first time” — as quickly as possible, says Dobrin.
Stocking the right tires and sizes “is a moving target. And it
changes every year.
“It’s not just having the right size, either. Porsche has three
or four different specs within the same size, the same category
and the same tire.
“Within one tire, there might be 18 or 20 different versions
of a tire!
“To predict what you’re going to need is challenging. Tires
perform very different functions on very different vehicles (that
have) very different drivers and we have to make sure we’re
accommodating all of that.
“The UHP tire category has changed and become much, much
broader,” adds Dani Freedman, vice president of marketing for
Butler Tires and Wheels.
