Corghi USA hosting May 16 grand opening at tire equipment supplier's new North American HQ

Rather than relying on a separate North American distributor for its lines of professional tire servicing equipment, Italy’s Corghi is inaugurating a Corghi USA headquarters outside of Cincinnati in Hamilton, Ohio.

A grand opening ceremony is set for May 16. The 12,000-square-foot HQ includes a warehouse and showroom along with offices and a facility for conducting industry seminars and training sessions.

“By opening this new branch, Corghi will be able to better understand the market needs and to develop products and services increasingly focused on achieving maximum customer satisfaction,” says Remo Corghi, the company’s co-founder and president.

“A dedicated Corghi American and Italian staff will directly supervise from here all sales and service activities, including a supply of spare parts – ensuring ‘business as usual’ to Corghi customers through a network of sales representatives, wholesale distributors and service centers,” he notes.

Corghi says the company obtained the world’s first patent for a tire changer in the 1960s, expanding into also providing wheel balancers and other professional tire industry equipment.

It is a key supplier for Wal-Mart’s tire and lubrication centers, with plans to augment the arrangement. “We’re still supporting their stores and we’re bidding on future equipment sales,” says service manager Jim Crowe.

Based in the Po River Valley town of Correggio in northern Italy, Remo Corghi and his late brother Erminio began building the business in 1947 by inventing a tape recorder-based decoy device for hunters. They also developed radios and other electronic equipment, establishing Corghi Electromechanics in 1954. The company produced television voltage stabilizers, agricultural machinery, household appliances and textile equipment, driving forward into the tire industry with the automotive boom of the 1950s and ‘60s.

The company’s subsequent growth includes a production plant in Pieve Fosciana outside of Lucca and an electronic research laboratory near Sassuolo.

The new North American facility is located at 9325 Sutton Place, Hamilton, OH 45011.