Cypress-based Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. is known for tires for drag racers, off-road vehicles and racecars.
Now it? looking to appeal to soccer moms and sedan drivers who are the domain of larger rivals Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. of Akron, Ohio, and Japan? Bridgestone Corp.
?e want to be in that broad market where if a soccer mom needs tires for her Toyota Highlander, her dealer will suggest Toyo,?said Julie Sediq, Toyo? vice president of marketing.
The company, a unit of Japan? Toyo Tire & Rubber Co., is spending $20 million on ad-vertising to appeal to everyday tire buyers, who usually don? think about brands until they?e at a store or mechanic.
The campaign includes TV commercials, magazine ads and marketing aimed at tire sellers.
The dealer angle is a large part of the campaign. Toyo? ?eople Who Know?ads play up the role of dealers in recommending tires.
?ires tend to be something people buy when they are told that they need too,?Sediq said. ?he brand of the tire isn? necessarily the first thing on peoples?minds, unless they are an enthusiast or a family friend told them about it.?br>
The company is getting some national exposure with TV commercials airing during basketball games and the National Hockey League? playoffs and Stanley Cup games.
Print ads are running in automotive magazines including Motor Trend and Road & Track.
For dealers, Toyo has shipped about 2,000 displays to them in a bid to muscle in on the other brands often on display.
Toyo? tires are designed in Japan. The company? Cypress office handles the U.S. marketing, sales, customer relations and dealer relations. It had sales of $980 million last year.
The tire maker employs about 75 people in Cypress.
Last year, Toyo added a product development team to help design tires specifically for the North American market.
?hey look and see if there are any trends or unique sizes that are in demand due to vehicle demands and help communicate those needs to Japan,?Sediq said.
The tire maker has been dealing with the downturn as consumers put off buying tires.
The Cypress operation saw North American revenue fall 14% last year from 2007.
The industry has seen tough going as sales have fallen faster than raw material prices, which surged during the summer of 2008.
?ire sales have been down for the industry as a whole for the last year,?Sediq said.
Toyo? parent company saw global sales fall 8% to $3.27 billion last year.
This year, Toyo expects North American sales to be down 10% with hopes for a pickup in the second half of the year.
?here is always going to be a need for replacement tires, especially now that people are planning on keeping their cars longer,?Sediq said.
