Photo: Gemma Evans, Unsplash
When the white stuff comes down from the sky, the green, pink and brown stuff fills up the cash registers at tire shops across Kelowna.
That’s what places like Canadian Tire, Integra Tire and Fountain Tire are experiencing these days, as a variety of factors have caused people to rush to put winter tires on their vehicles.
“Oh, absolutely it has, especially with the long weekend this weekend,” Fountain Tire’s Natasha Mondoux said Wednesday. “We have been extremely busy, like, 150 cars a day have been coming through here.”
The provincial requirement that winter tires be on highway travelling vehicles after Oct. 1, the snow that has fallen on the Connector and the Coquihalla, and the fact that Thanksgiving is this weekend are all reasons why people like Integra Tire’s Bruce Stranaghan are going nonstop these days.
“It’s tough to be busier,” Stranaghan said. “Between phones (ringing) and people trying to organize long weekends, there’s more people trying to do their due diligence and get organized before it snows. You have to be here to really understand the busyness.”
Canadian Tire’s John Gilbert said winter tires are definitely one of the hottest selling items at his Harvey Avenue location this week.
“I can definitely tell you right now every day is full, and I’m quite confident we’re booking at least a week in advance—if not more,” Gilbert said. “We’re definitely in the prime of the tire installation business right now.”
Fountain Tire and Integra Tire are also booking into next week already. Stranaghan said drop-ins could still happen at Integra if there are cancellations or if his employees get ahead of the day’s work.
All Biz Releases Stories
