New Bridgestone Select store opens in Christchurch

New Bridgestone Select store opens in Christchurch; designed to succeed in an increasingly competitive industry

Meet Greg Murphy at the opening event and have a pink caps donation made on your behalf to the New Zealand Breast Cancer Foundation

Bridgestone New Zealand is opening another new Bridgestone Select dealership this Saturday, the 22nd of November 10am – 2pm at 51 Birmingham Drive, Middleton, Christchurch. This will be the 24th store to open nationwide which highlights the success of the unique automotive store model - Bridgestone Select – which offers a mix of tyre retail in addition to mechanical services.

Greg Neville, the Wholesale Sales Manager for Bridgestone New Zealand, says the new store will be a complete one-stop shop for Christchurch customers in the suburb of Middleton and the surrounding area. “We recognised a few years ago the opportunity to expand our offer to include automotive servicing and repair in our tyre stores. We had vehicles in store for tyres that also needed a warrant of fitness, minor repairs or a service. Customers were asking if we could do the work as it was more convenient to have all their automotive needs looked after in one location. We considered what other international markets were doing and developed our own tyre and automotive model – the Bridgestone Select store. This involved a refurbishment of the store including customer facilities and a competitive automotive offer that didn’t compromise quality. We rolled out this model in 24 of our own metro stores and fine-tuned it before offering it to our dealer network.

Bridgestone Select Birmingham Drive is only the second dealer store to offer this new model. The Owner/Director, Paul Price says, “We needed to take on our retail tyre capability in a far more serious capacity, but also give the driving public the ability to have all their mechanical and servicing needs met from wheel alignments to warrants, in a single venue. From a business point of view, this new store means no business turned away and that’s hugely attractive for growth.”

On the open day customers can check out the new showroom and upgraded workshop. “We use the latest tyre technology with lots of tyres and racking,” Paul says. “We have four work bays, two deep and a lot more hoists than previous. We’ve been more creative with the layout and can now handle very large vehicles like transit vans, light trucks and campervans.”

Opening event activities
• The day will have Greg Murphy, four-time winner of the Bathurst 1000, present signing autographs and meeting the public.
• Paul is passionate about classic rallying and active in a number of local car clubs, so is organising for some special vehicles including hot rods to be at the opening.
• The store are asking female customers to come in on the day, so the team can make a donation on their behalf to the New Zealand Breast Cancer Foundation and put Bridgestone pink tyre valve caps on their cars.
• There’s a thousand dollars of Bridgestone tyres to be won in a competition and lots of other giveaways

“We’re also going to make it day of fun for the family; The Rock will be on site with a BBQ and there will be a bouncy castle and face painting for the kids!” says Paul.

About Bridgestone New Zealand Limited
Bridgestone New Zealand Limited was formed in September 1998, following the merger of two of the world’s premier tyre companies: Bridgestone and Firestone. Today the Bridgestone Corporation is the world’s leading tyre manufacturer, supplying quality tyres for cars, trucks, buses, construction and mining vehicles, industrial machinery, agricultural machinery, aircraft, motorcycles and others. In New Zealand, Bridgestone, Firestone and Supercat branded tyres are available throughout the country at a number of retailers, including Firestone, Bridgestone Select, Bridgestone Tyre Centre and other Bridgestone stockists. These retailers also provide a comprehensive range of tyre and automotive related services. Bridgestone New Zealand Limited has been awarded the internationally recognised carboNZero certification since 2010. www.bridgestone.co.nz

ENDS

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