Jay Patel, the current CEO of Royal Tyres, began his career in January 1973. After his dad had passed away, and in order to look after the interests of his family, Jay was thrust into the business then known as Royal Vulcanizing. As the business was established in 1939, Royal Tyres celebrates its 85th anniversary in 2024.
Jay’s successful journey started off filling petrol at the service station, one of the departments of the company, which included a tyre fitting bay, spares, a workshop, and a retreading factory. He progressed to become a tyre salesman where he learnt about tyres and related matters.
Hiccups along the Way
Royal Vulcanizing history was not all smooth sailing as some hiccups were experienced along the way. The family business was run by Jay’s father Raman Patel and his two brothers who between them had seven sons, including Jay, who was the youngest. Around 1982, the family split ways and Jay joined three of his cousins who together ran the business.
Another hiccup was caused by the Group Areas Act. As their company was positioned in Epsom Durban, the property was taken away from the family. They were given an alternate site 30 kilometres away in Chatsworth. This property was nowhere near the size of what they had, which comprised a two story building with a ground, first and second floor.
As the company had operated from the Epsom Road location for 30 odd years a sound customer base had been built up. “And no matter how loyal the customers were, I don’t think they were going to travel 30 kilometres to put on a set of tyres. I knew then that I had to find a place in and around Durban to keep that clientele,” explained Jay.
Jay looked at many different properties and finally settled for the premises where Royal Tyres is currently situated in Umgeni Road. This relocation was one of the biggest challenges faced by the business, however Jay commented that they resolved the matter successfully and made the new premises work very well.
Grown Its Reach
In the beginning, the business only occupied 15% of the premises and their rental was R5000 per month. Over time the cousins increased production and expanded their operations. When the opportunity arose to buy the building in 1988, they saw the potential for further growth. As the family did not have the finances required at the time, they obtained a loan from the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC). Royal Tyres progressed from there, eventually occupying the entire building, which is about six and a half thousand square metres.
Over the years the company has continued to grow its reach; a shop was opened in Port Shepstone in 2001, in Harding in 2013, in Phoenix in 2023 and in February 2024 in Johannesburg. Commenting on the success of Royal Tyres, Jay says that the business is going well and that they have no complaints. He added that the family pride themselves on giving good advice and always conduct themselves with integrity and honesty. “And obviously,” he remarked, “The tyre prices have to be right and with our buying power we manage to do that very well.”
Best Advice
The best advice that was given to himself, Jay says, was by two friends who were qualified chartered accountants. After the split formed in the family, they advised Jay not to let the factory go. He was consequently successful in bidding for the equipment. “I must tell you that without that advice, I wouldn’t have been where I am today,” he explained.
“I think in any business, more so in a family business, you are always going to have your conflicts. I try and overcome these conflicts the best that I can and up till now it has worked. It’s not a question of only overcoming them. It’s the manner in which you do it,” said Jay.
He added that the company is strong on upskilling staff, across all levels of the company, on a continuous basis. He commented, “I don’t have to tell you what that does to you as a company. We have about 15 staff members that have been here for more than 25 years, which I think shows that management does look after their staff.”
Recently, Royal Tyres has introduced a graduate programme in collaboration with Durban University of Technology, placing nine graduates in various departments across the organisation. Additionally, they have provided 53 placements through Shukela Training Centre, enabling trainees to gain valuable in-service training.
Doing Something Different
Speaking of who has inspired him along his journey Jay said that Ratan Tata, the former chairman of the Tata Group stands out for him. “His philosophy was very simple. Every year he gave a percentage of his profits to charity.”
Included in Jay’s many accomplishments over the years are those in his role as chairperson of the South African Tyre Dealers Association. He successfully mooted the idea of getting rid of import duties on casings that were used to retread tyres. While the fight with the customs and excise department took a long time and cost the Association a fair bit of money, they eventually won and got rid of the duties.
Over the years, Royal Tyres has received recognition that attest to its excellence and impact. In 2024 the company won the Standard Bank KZN Top Business Award in the family category.
Three generations later, Royal Tyres remains loyal to family and its directors include Jasmeena Shiba (daughter), Pranav Patel (son), Akshay Patel (son) and Mr Nayan Shiba (son-in-law). The family plan to continue to grow the company. From 2023 to 2024 Royal Tyres has already doubled their profits, while other companies are struggling. Royal Tyres believes that they are doing something different, which is working for them.
In conclusion, Jay has a motto that he says he keeps telling his children. “Remember one thing in life, is that you’ll make the money. The day money makes you; you’re going to go downhill from there.”
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