Queensland's Millard Service Centre marks the milestone
Hankook Tyre Australia has revealed the first Truck Masters store as part of its “global strategy of moving downstream into retail tyre sales”.
Millard Service Centre, located in between Brisbane and the Gold Coast, becomes the first partner in Australia.
Millard had been a long-term Hankook customer and part of the Hankook Masters program for several years, with owner Kate and Francis Morrissey making the transition as part of a recent renovation.
“Truck tyres make up more than 10 per cent of our sales in Australia,” Hankook sales director Marc Sibbald says.
“To see the Truck Masters program come to reality after several years of planning is an excellent achievement from everyone in the Hankook team.”
“Our retailer partners have built strong relationships with transport operators, which is supported by the quality and performance of the Hankook truck and bus products.
“Tyre technology is the same as other industries, it gets better with each generation.
“We now have the latest Smart Flex design across our range of tyres for local, regional and line haul applications, so customers are getting the tyre equivalent of an iPhone 11 when they purchase a Hankook product.”
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Hankook says it has invested significantly in 2019 to grow the Masters program and, by the end of the year, expects more than 30 stores in the network.
It notes the Truck Masters program was introduced in 2019 to build awareness across the transport industry of Hankook’s extensive range of truck tyres including PBS applications.
Hankook national channel manager David Hooper says the Truck Masters sub-brand will help owner drivers and transport operators identify where they can source Hankook TBR products from an authorised retailer.
“Hankook tyres that are imported by Hankook Tyre Australia and sold through the Hankook Authorised Dealer network are covered under warranty so customers can be confident of the quality and performance specifications of these tyres,” Hooper says.
“However, Hankook tyres that are imported into Australia by unauthorised third parties and sold by unauthorised dealers cannot be verified for quality, age, and storage history.”