Coker Group, the holding company comprised of leading manufacturers of collector car and motorcycle wheels and tires, which includes Coker Tire, Wheel Vintiques, Universal Vintage Tire, Phoenix Race Tires, Specialty Wheel and Roadster Wire Wheel, announced today a rebranding of the group name to reflect its forward looking focus on the entirety of the automotive aftermarket including, but not limited to, the performance and restoration markets.
The new name - Legendary Companies - is meant to represent the breadth and scope of its current market segments while providing Legendary Companies with greater opportunities for future expansion into new sectors, officials said.
“We’re proud to announce our rebranding of Coker Group as Legendary Companies,” said President and CEO Wade Kawasaki, “and excited for this chance to expand Legendary Companies into diverse markets while remaining true to our core consumers. The naming was very intentional; we chose the word ‘Legendary’ because we see our diverse, vibrant enthusiast customer base as the real legends in our industry.” “Now with this change, we will be positioned to bring our direct to consumer expertise and global distribution model to enhance the efforts of the performance brands we personally use and admire,” he added.
This rebrand represents a major expansion in potential scope for Legendary Companies, particularly in the fast-growing performance vehicle and late-model aftermarket sectors. These sectors are expected to be major targets for Legendary Companies and its private equity firm partner Irving Place Capital in future acquisitions.
“We will continue to expand through the addition of top-tier companies and we respect the importance of maintaining the legacy and heritage of the amazing businesses that populate the aftermarket,“ said Irving Place Capital Co-Managing Partner Phil Carpenter. “Our capable leadership team is well prepared for future expansion. Both President and CEO Wade Kawasaki and Marketing Director Marla Moore bring decades of industry experience to the table and we trust their ability to identify companies with strong teams to join Legendary Companies.”
This announcement comes after several months of expansion for Legendary Companies, including subsidiary Coker Tire’s acquisition and integration of German-based classic and vintage car tire distributor, MOR, which has already expanded global sales and distribution. In addition, subsidiary company Wheel Vintiques recently expanded its product line to include modern wheel fitments and high performance alloy wheels following the purchase of two performance aluminum wheel companies.
Coker Tire is the world's largest manufacturer/supplier of collector vehicle tires and motorcycle tires with distributors in over 60 countries. Since 1958, Coker Tire has supplied collector vehicle enthusiasts with tires and wheels.