Alfonso Zendejas, President of Bridgestone for the North Latin American region, which includes Mexico, Ecuador, Colombia, Central America and the Caribbean, it foresees that, with an eventual economic recession on the horizon, The outlook for the company looks favourable.
“When there is a recession and there are no new car sales, people are busy fixing their own vehicles, and that customer view of: instead of spending on a new car, I invest in the car I already have, gives us an opportunity for sale,” he argues.
The forecast for the current year is that sales of the brand rebound 1.2% annual, being driven by this phenomenon. Now, of the total production in the complex from Bridgeston in Cuernavaca, Morelos, one third is destined for the original equipment market (tires that are sent to assembly plants), another third for export, and the other third for the replacement market. In October 2021, the company announced an investment of 100 million dollars for its expansion and modernization, driven by the need to make larger tires in the face of the migration from sedans to SUVs.
During the height of the semiconductor shortage, which ran from mid-2021 to mid-2022, the aftermarket benefited.
“At that time when there were no cars, when the automakers could not supply the demand worldwidethese users began to maintain their car, to change tires, to change brakes… All the parts that a car has. That benefited the replacement market”, says Mauricio García, director of marketing for Latin America North.
Although vehicle sales in Mexico had monthly increases in the last quarter of the year, after gradual improvements in supply chains, which brought increases in production for manufacturers and with it, better inventory levels, total sales of all 2022, which amounted to 1.1 million units, there are still 231,878 units below 2019before the health contingency.
The difference is much bigger when compared to 2016, the best year in sales for the local market, with 1.6 million cars sold, according to figures from the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi).
