In late 2011, 1-800 Radiator And AC has invested in two product categories that the company says will provide major growth opportunities. The company announced it has purchased a $4 million distributor of brakes and undercar parts in the San Diego area and has launched a major expansion into fuel pumps.
1-800 Radiator expects fuel pumps to provide $15 million of sales in 2012, with less than 20 percent of the company’s franchisees carrying the product. The parts are being container purchased from China and resold by the company to its franchisees. The company says it’s also recruiting additional domestic suppliers.
1-800 Radiator says it also plans to integrate its proprietary systems into the undercar business in the next 12 months. If systems integration proves as profitable as it has with radiators and AC, the company feels it could then roll out up to 500 undercar locations in three to five years. (In 2006 and 2007, the company rolled out 155 new radiator locations). The “undercar” category is a $7 billion market — approximately 3.5 times the $2 billion HVAC market in which 1-800 Radiator & AC now competes, the company noted. 1-800 Radiator says it plans to enter certain additional distribution markets if the undercar rollout proves successful.
1-800 Radiator says its systems-based advantages will help it better serve the demanding undercar market, which the company says has very high failure rates, thousands of different part numbers and many domestic suppliers, along with customers who demand a very high level of availability and delivery speed.
1-800 Radiator & AC notes it has a 16 percent national market share in replacement radiators and, in just three years, has attained a 5 percent share in the national air conditioning parts market. The company says it has also invested in initiatives to significantly expand these categories in 2012.
More information:
1-800-Radiator & AC
