Tyres a “major opportunity” for independent garages
Cleevely Motors has experienced a 30% increase in tyre sales since joining Point S
Tyre sales can fill the EV servicing gap and deliver new revenue streams
“If you buy tyres properly and strategically through wholesale markets and deal with the right suppliers, tyres can become a little goldmine for your business, particularly when it comes to EV servicing.” – Matt Cleevely, Managing Director of Cleevely Motors and Cleevely Electric Vehicles
Matt Cleevely, Managing Director of Cleevely Motors and Cleevely Electric Vehicles, has urged independent garages looking to diversify and evolve to consider tyre sales as an additional source of revenue, particularly for EVs. Cleevely has experienced a 30% increase in overall tyre sales since joining the Point S UK network in late 2023.
“Like it or not, independents are going to see a lot more EVs coming through the workshop and they need to be ready to profit from this work, rather than shying away from it,” Cleevely said. “It’s well known that EVs have fewer mechanical parts than ICE vehicles, but the tyres do wear out a lot more quickly, presenting opportunities for tyre servicing and sales as a new revenue stream.”
Cleevely has gone from selling approximately two tyres a day to around 200 a month since joining Point S and investing in tyre replacements. He insists that it’s not just profit that makes tyres important in today’s servicing world – workshops have a “duty of care” to advise motorists on all parts of their vehicle.
“Tyres are a critical safety item. As a technician working on my customers’ vehicles, I have a duty of care to educate them on the importance of tyre safety. If someone comes in with a bald tyre, it’s my responsibility to make them aware and replace it with a safe one. It gives a confusing message if you’re sending customers away somewhere different to have their tyres replaced and then asking for their vehicle back to carry out additional work.”
Cleevely Motors was the first independent workshop in the UK to transition heavily to EV. Today, the company’s EV saturation rate is at around 52% and growing. The ability to offer tyre replacements is helping the company bridge a gap in lost revenue caused by EVs having fewer parts to maintain and replace compared with ICE vehicles. The garage’s experience is that there is money to be made from tyres with the right support networks in place.
“It’s long been a view of many independent workshops that it’s tough to earn money from tyres because they are a relatively low value item compared to other parts, but this is not the case,” Cleevely continued. “Since becoming a part of the Point S network, I’ve learned that if you buy tyres properly and strategically through wholesale markets and deal with the right suppliers, tyres can become a little goldmine for your business, particularly when it comes to EV servicing.”