North Carolina Dealer Helping Customers Battle Recession with Tire Cost Controls

AKRON, Ohio, September 30, 2009 - The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has named Hickory, N.C.,-based Clark Tire as its Commercial Tire Dealer of the Month for September.

Clark Tire was chosen for providing customers outstanding service, while helping them to choose from among Goodyear, Dunlop and Kelly tire brands. The honor also recognizes Clark Tire for helping customers make full use of Goodyear services, such as fleetHQ and TVTRACK, and G-TRACS automated retread tracking system.

Clark Tire also helps its customers achieve more miles to removal or reduce tire costs through tire retreading. Clark Tire uses the pre-cure method at its retreading plant in Hickory.

John D. Clark, president of Clark Tire and son of company founder, John A. Clark, said he takes pride in the fact that his dealership managed to grow its business over the last year even though the heart of its territory - the Greater Hickory area - suffers from the highest unemployment rate in the state and among the highest in the nation at 15.4 percent.

“Even though a lot of trucking companies have gone under and there’s a lot of chaos in the marketplace, our truck tire team has still managed to overcome all of this and continued growing our business for the sixth year in a row,” Clark said. “It’s a testament to the hard work and persistence of our sales force and service technicians that we’ve managed to grow our business over the last several years.”

Clark said he believes that the hard work and persistence of his sales and service staff are among the chief reasons why Clark Tire succeeds in sales and why the company has earned Goodyear’s “Dealer of the Month” award for the month of September.

Clark Tire was founded by John A. Clark in 1943. The company has grown to 16 retail locations, two commercial truck tire centers, a retread plant, and three wholesale distribution centers. Its primary store and headquarters are located in Hickory, an area about 60 miles northwest of Charlotte that is home to many furniture and textile manufacturing facilities.

“Our success has also come largely due to the innovative and quality products we’ve been able to offer through the Goodyear, Dunlop and Kelly lines,” Clark said. “Our company has been in business selling Goodyear products for 66 years. The products that Goodyear has introduced recently through these lines have been the best we’ve seen. It really helps when we have Goodyear behind us.”

Goodyear Commercial Tire Systems offers a complete portfolio of products and services to the trucking and waste haul industries, including a full range of original equipment and replacement tires and retreads. In addition, the company offers fleetHQ business solutions to fleets of all sizes. This includes a nationwide network of servicing dealers, the 24/7 fleetHQ Solution Center, national programs, tire management tools, on-line information access and business problem-solving for tomorrow’s trucking fleets.

For more information, visit Goodyear Commercial Tire’s Web site.