F R I D AY : M AY 2 7, 2 0 1 6
B8
RAMON L. TOMELDAN EDITOR
editorial@thestandard.com.ph
MOTORING
Rhino Racks offers a wide array of roof-mounted luggage and tent awning systems.
DON’T JUST LOAD IT, RACK IT UP Text and photos by Dino Ray V. Directo III
FOR MOST of us average gearheads, a roof rack is just a set of bars secured to the roof of an automobile whose primary purpose is to carry bulky items such as luggage, bicycles, and other personal stuff But beyond the utilitarian purpose that roof racks represent is a billion dollar business that powers an industry. In Southeast Asia, The United States and Europe, the roof/luggage rack industry is a competitive and growing market with brands such as Malone, Yakima, Kuat, Thule and Rhino Rack fighting for a profitable slice of the market. With people going out of town every weekend to de-stress and enjoy the outdoors, the need for a clever storage device is essential. In the Philippines and Southeast Asia, the most dominant roof/luggage brand is Rhino Racks of Australia. Distributed in the Philippines by The Outdoors Club based in Greenhills, San Juan, Rhino Rack is an Australian company which designs and manufactures durable and easy-to-use roof racks, luggage boxes, bike and kayak carriers plus other load securing accessories. “We also have customized products to address every loading requirement such as roof mounted tent systems and luggage trays with built in LED lamps for night time driving,” says Richard Cropley, President of Rhino Racks Australia, during a round table interview at the
company HQ in Rydalmere, NSW Australia. Cropley’s company is now a global brand, and he waxes sentimental every time he recalls the time when he had to sell his house to fund the company. “It was hard work, and we really had to burn the midnight oil to keep on designing and manufacturing products that are functional, fun to use while looking good at the same time,” adds Cropley. He also adds that Rhino Racks is constantly finding ways to improve their product line-up. “At the moment our luggage trays are making good progress in terms of sales and we are innovating the design by making them more sturdy and adding on LED lamps to make them more functional at night. We have also expanded our tent awning system by having a roof mounted tent wherein two people can sleep inside to protect them from the elements,” says Cropley. Rhino Racks will celebrate their 25th year in the roof rack business next year, and Cropley is planning a huge camping style weekend for its patrons and dealer principals from all over the World. “We will be using the entire Rhino Racks
product line-up for this and our guest will get to experience the outdoors lifestyle of the brand,” he says. Cropley also commended the efforts of local Rhino Racks distributor Erwin Versoza, who is currently the number one distributor in Southeast Asia and number six in terms of growth in the global arena. “It is through our partners like Mr. Versoza that we credit our stratospheric growth all these years,” explains the man who made the Aussies explore the swamps and the outback of Australia. The Outdoors Club in Greenhills is also the distributor of Mont Blanc and Maxliner products in the country.
Rhino Racks President Richard Cropley shows off some early designs of the company logo.
Toyota, Volkswagen jump on ridesharing bandwagon TOYOTA and Volkswagen announced separate partnerships Tuesday with rideshare companies Uber and Gett, in the latest such moves by major carmakers. Japan's Toyota and ridesharing titan Uber said they had entered into a memorandum of understanding to explore collaboration, starting with trials in countries where ridesharing is expanding. "Through this collaboration with Uber, we would like to explore new ways of delivering secure, convenient and attractive mobility services to customers," Shigeki Tomoyama, senior managing officer of Toyota Motor Corporation, said in a joint statement. The deal includes a strategic investment by the Toyota Financial Services Corporation and its Mirai Creation Investment Limited Partnership, although no figure was disclosed. The partnership will create new leasing options enabling car buyers to lease their vehicles from Toyota Financial Services and cover their payments with what they make as Uber drivers. Toyota and Uber are also exploring collaboration on developing in-car apps and setting up a program to sell Toyota and Lexus vehicles to Uber.
"Toyota vehicles are among the most popular cars on the Uber platform worldwide and we look forward to collaborating with Toyota in multiple ways going forward," said Emil Michael, Uber's chief business officer. Separately, German auto giant Volkswagen said it had made a $300 million strategic investment in Uber competitor Gett, which has a presence in more than 60 countries worldwide including London, Moscow and New York. "The ride-hailing market represents the greatest market potential in on-demand mobility, while creating the technological platform for developing tomorrow's mobility business models," it said in a statement. Shahar Waiser, Gett's chief executive and founder, said the company "provides VW with the technology to expand beyond car ownership to on-demand mobility for consumers and businesses." Toyota and Volkswagen are not the first carmakers to link up with rideshare apps. In March, General Motors and Lyft unveiled a joint car rental service for drivers, a move aimed at boosting the number of vehicles available for the Uber rival. AFP