[JRTJH]

If you go to NAPA or to any Car/Truck dealer parts department you'll find they have 5 or 6 price guides for each part they sell. The general public buys parts for 100%, private mechanic garages buy parts for 75%, Ford pays 50% for warranty replacements, etc....

Every wholesale business I've ever done business with has price lists that are negotiated as a part of the contract. When I had my own clinic I bought my medical supplies from a specific distributor. I always had their competition come in with lower prices if I'd sign a 1 year contract with them. Usually the items they were supplying were exactly the same with the same delivery times/charges. At the end of the year, we'd negotiate for the next year's pricing. It's all about what the tire distributor charges the shops in his area. Some get a discount for buying more tires, some get a discount for being closer (lower transportation/delivery costs) some get a discount because of a negotiated price. Bottom line, at least in my opinion, WalMart is getting a significantly lower price from the distributor so they're selling the tires cheaper. You can bet they are still making money on them or they wouldn't sell them. So, if DT is paying the same price, they're really REALLY making a profit and if the distributor is refusing to sell to DT for the same price as they sell to WalMart, it's time for DT to renegotiate their price list.....