Major Seating Supplier Is Expanding Tier 2 Business

Q: What opportunities do you see for Tachi-S to find clients among top automotive suppliers?

A: Our automotive business is growing rapidly in Mexico and across Latin America. OEMs and Tier 1 companies located in the US are both looking for suppliers south of the border. Tachi-S has positioned itself as a company with 23 years of experience in Mexico, producing seating parts such as headrests and trim covers.

Q: Which products does Tachi-S provide as a Tier 2 supplier?

A: Our business growth in Mexico has been anchored around directly supplying Nissan and Honda. However, as our Tier 2 business capacity increases, we will look to build up our market share with other customers. Currently, we have two new plants that make trim covers in Calvillo, Aguascalientes, and Ojocaliente, Zacatecas. The Ojocaliente plant also takes care of manufacturing pour-in-place headrests. We are ready to support other Tier 1 companies that might need a supplier who truly understands their needs. Our Tier 1 business revenue will always be higher than that coming from the Tier 2 segment, but the latter will continue to grow and become a very important portion of our total business.

Q: How did Tachi-S modify its operations to compete both as a direct and an indirect supplier?

A: As a Tier 2 supplier, Tachi-S is selling the same commodities we use in our Tier 1 products. For the future, we will make sure both sides of our business are equally well attended to. As we are now producing for our own Tier 1 operations and for other direct suppliers, we must make sure the same level of quality and competitiveness is present at both levels. We consider this dual focus to be an advantage for Tachi-S, since we are able to offer a more integrated final product to the OEMs as a Tier 1 supplier, by relying on our own production of components we offer at the Tier 2 level.