Heritage in Review / January 2002

The SCCTI is an association of suppliers with the objective of promoting the interests of Canadian Tire Dealers and Retreaders and co-operate and assist in regional and national trade shows. In November of 1970 the association's first meeting was held in Dundas, Ontario. This meeting was instigated by a need to generate more support from dealers and suppliers for industry trade shows. The focus of shows had strayed from business to let say, more leisurely activities. In attendance at the first Suppliers meeting was Doug Young/Myers Tire Supply, Harry Romolok/Chemco Rubber, Bill Lottridge/Loomis-Root, and Bob Conium/National Rubber. These four men committed their companies to giving one hundred dollars each to help organize a trade show in Niagara Falls, Ontario in January of 1971.

The suppliers went to work in the field, promoting the show to their customers. They sponsored a speaker, Ed Wagner, and put on a couple of dinners. This show was the start of a formal joint association of suppliers and dealers working together to make their industry better.

In 1972 there was a drive for new members at annual dues of one hundred dollars each. The Suppliers constructed agendas for Atlantic Tire Dealers, Western Tire Dealers and Central Canada Tire Dealers (now OTDA) shows for the winter of 1973 (The Quebec Tire Dealers had not yet formed). When the Tire Dealers Association of Canada was formed, they stipulated in their constitution to have two members of the Suppliers Council on their board. This is in their constitution today.

The TDAC and SCCTI started to co-host a hospitality suite at the ARA (now ITRA) show in Louisville, Kentucky in April 1983. There was an annual tradition to meet with your Canadian peers at the Louisville suite up until the show left Louisville in 1998.

Over the years, the SCCTI's membership has grown to represent the bulk of Canada's tire dealer suppliers. The list of directors and members who have volunteered their time could form a "Who"s who" for our industry. We continue today to support and assist in the planning of the various shows across Canada. This cooperative effort is intended to result in shows and conventions with agendas that interest all factions of the Canadian tire industry.

As we look at our industry today, it is evident that there is just as much need for our association now as there was thirty years ago. Perhaps the specific news headlines are different, but the objective is the same. Promote, educate and make our shows interesting and effective. The unparalleled cooperation between dealers and a suppliers association in Canada brings us a step closer to achieving these objectives.