As a new year dawns, none of us has a crystal ball, but I thought I’d try to explore a few things that will affect our businesses generally in 2026 and beyond.
We continue to live in unsettled times, with Ukraine, the Middle East and various other areas of geopolitical instability.
While these are all happening on distant shores, they still impact our doorstep too. We have seen the impact of the closure of the Suez Canal previously, and it remains a threatened environment, so essential for our trade routes and some of our tyre supply. While trade tariffs have settled in some respects, others still need to be resolved, and the threat of tyre dumping into the market remains.
Amongst the international threats is cybersecurity. Every business, regardless of size, is a potential target for cyber attack. As more household brands fall victim, such as M&S, Co-op, and JLR, our clients’ expectations of the security of their personal data increase.
Not only are customers’ cyber expectations increasing, but so too are their environmental expectations. The consumer is becoming increasingly environmentally concerned about their product and service choices, and we need to be ready to respond.
The use of AI by businesses holds great potential in analysing and managing customer relationships and trends, but there are growing environmental concerns around the data centres that power AI usage. For many businesses, AI is still an alien concept, and so a balance between ethical adoption and business benefit will continue to be a necessary consideration.
One of the sector’s greatest challenges is our future workforce. Doing what we have always done by way of recruitment, induction, ongoing development, and professionalisation of our people will need particular focus in 2026. The job of a tyre technician becomes increasingly technology-led led and we need to improve how we sell our sector as a career option going forward.
Many challenges and opportunities lie ahead, and I am confident that NTDA will be influential in supporting members through 2026, addressing some of these challenges head-on with our members.
Ian Andrew, NTDA CEO