Bremtec – Trusted by the Trade

Bremtec is a company in the automotive industry that distributes brake pads, brake discs, brake wear sensors and brake accessories. It has a number of loyal customers in Australia, New Zealand and America.

The company is run by managing partners Steven Kreti and Victor Makrievski. Steve has been in the automotive industry for over 25 years out of which the last nine have been spent in building up Bremtec. Victor has also been with Bremtec since its establishment and prior to this, he was the marketing manager of a company that imported brake friction products from the U.K.

Bremtec is run on the principle that it will distribute only the highest quality aftermarket brake friction products to automotive parts resellers and independent brake specialists. Every item that the company supplies is manufactured to the most exacting original equipment standards.

Recollecting the events that led up to the formation of Bremtec, Victor says, “I saw an opportunity for us to do something when the market was tightening up. It was a difficult time and sales were going down. I saw that we could get a quality product from China that could be priced right and presented well.

“That was when I did a business model study. Steve owned a brake and clutch business that was selling to the trade. He was buying products that were being purchased by a few different companies, reboxed in their own brand and he was reselling those brands.

“We noticed that the branding, the look and feel and quality were pretty substandard. Then Steve suggested that we get together and get a manufacturer to manufacture to our standards.

“We decided that we would offer a product that was presented in the best possible way, give customers the confidence they needed when they purchased the brand, market it well and see if we could sell it to the wholesale trade.”

Upgradation of products

The company is launching a new high-carbon rotor standard for the European range. Bremtec saw an opportunity in the market when it noticed that the trade was selling cheap rotors of poor quality. It was decided to launch a high-carbon rotor that was priced a little higher than the competition but which was vastly superior in quality and performance.

It is very likely that this new product will do well in the market as the benefits that it offers far outweigh its higher selling price. There is a constant endeavour on the part of the organisation to redesign the formulas that it supplies with its brake pads. Currently, work is in progress on a special shim from 3M to be supplied with the shim that is sourced from America. Efforts are also on to broaden the range of rotors that are supplied as currently only European rotors are on offer.

Distribution strategy

Victor describes Bremtec’s distribution strategy, “We have loyal customers Australia- wide and in New Zealand and in America that love our brand, and as we work on a new product or an upgrade, we let our customers know, they come on board.

“We tend to stick to the customers we have, we are not a retail business. We supply to the wholesale market and to stockists who stock our products on their shelves. They distribute through their network to their customers. A lot of our sales is through word of mouth as well. It is a small industry and people know each other.”

The company values the relationships that it has built with its customers. It works closely with them and in many cases, speaks to them every day. This helps to get feedback on the products sold and on service issues. As a result of having established strong ties with its resellers, Bremtec’s manufacturing facility has an annual turnover of 23 million brake pads and four million brake discs.

New product lines are developed based on customer needs. Recently a New Zealand distributor requested specific numbers that are just for the New Zealand market. The company immediately began the process for their manufacture.

There is a system in place where distributors are offered a catalogue lookup which furnishes vehicle details, allowing for the supply of correct part numbers. This is a unique approach in the industry and normally manufacturers do not offer this facility. In fact, there is a special team that helps customers to look up the correct part.

If a customer needs to supply a part for an Audi A6 and there are five listings, the company’s team uses its expertise and confirms the correct part number. This backup service is very popular with customers and greatly appreciated by them as it allows them to quickly satisfy the requirements of the end-customer.

Motorsport

Bremtec sponsors Renee Gracie, Australia’s first woman to race in the Porsche Carrera Cup. The company has gained great mileage from this sponsorship and the exposure for its products has been tremendous. In the motorsport world, Renee is viewed as the equivalent of Danica Patrick, the former Indycar and now NASCAR racer.

Popularly known as the ‘Devil Princess’, a devil on the track and a princess off it, Renee participates in various promotions for Bremtec.

Customer service

Bremtec is known in the trade as a distributor with highly trustworthy and fair business practices. When it receives a warranty claim, it replaces products regardless of whether the problem is due to product, fitment or consumer issues. It does this because of the level of confidence that it has established with its customers over the years.

Bremtec accepts orders over the phone, fax or the internet. Although its online ordering system is rapidly gaining popularity, there are a number of customers who still prefer more traditional methods.

Above all, the company has a close relationship with the manufacturer of its products. This company, which is based in China, is highly receptive to the feedback and market information that Bremtec gives it. Based on this, it carries out suitable modifications so that the products that Bremtec offers its customers are the perfect match for their requirements.