KENDA CONTACT: Jimmy Yang
American Kenda Rubber Industrial Co., Ltd.
(614) 866-9803
jyang@kendausa.com
COOPER CONTACT: Michelle Zeisloft
Cooper Tire & Rubber Company
(419) 424-4251
mrzeisloft@coopertire.com
Kenda Rubber, Cooper Tire End Marketing and Distribution Arrangement
REYNOLDSBURG, OHIO, FEBRUARY 17, 2009 - American Kenda Rubber Industrial Co., Ltd. (d.b.a. Kenda USA Corporation) and Cooper Tire & Rubber Company (NYSE:CTB) today announced that effective May 1, 2009, they will be ending their marketing and distribution arrangement between the two companies in the United States and Canada, and at that time, Kenda will resume responsibility for the sales and marketing, distribution and customer service for the Kenda brand.
Since October 2004, Cooper has been the exclusive marketer of Kenda radial passenger and light truck tires in the United States and Canada. That agreement granted Cooper exclusive rights to market, sell and distribute Kenda’s radial passenger and radial light truck tires.
Jimmy Yang, President of Kenda USA, said, “Over the past few years, the Kenda-Cooper relationship has been beneficial for all parties involved. We are looking forward to the new direction of ‘re-launching’ our brand in the United States. As we take over the marketing activities for our brand, there is opportunity for growth in the US without having to change our distribution infrastructure. The Kenda-Cooper partnership has definitely added value for the Kenda brand and will continue to help Kenda’s growth in the tire market.”
“The decision to end our marketing and distribution relationship was a mutual decision between Kenda and Cooper,” said Phil Caris, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Cooper. “And while the results of the joint venture were positive, it was agreed that a new approach would be beneficial in pursuing each company’s brand strategy. We have been very happy with our relationship with Kenda. As we begin to look into the future, we felt this strategy put both companies in a better position in this tough economic environment.”
The transition for Cooper Tire dealers will be handled with a minimum of change and disruption so that customer service will not be affected. Both companies will continue as partners in the radial passenger and light truck tire plant in China, and technical and other related matters.
About Kenda Rubber Industrial Co., LTD.
Kenda Rubber Industrial Co., LTD., headquartered in Yuanlin, Taiwan, is the world’s leading tire and tube manufacturer in Bicycle, Motorcycle, Agricultural, Trailer, Lawn and Garden, ATV, Golf Cart, Folk Lift, Automobile and other specialty areas. The Company also produces rubber membrane serving the water retention and commercial roofing industry under the brand of Pond King and StaFast Roofing. Kenda employs more than 7,000 people and has 5 manufacturing facilities located in Taiwan, Vietnam and China. For more information, please visit the Company’s web site at: www.kendausa.com.
About Cooper Tire & Rubber Company
Cooper Tire & Rubber Company is a global company that specializes in the design, manufacture, marketing and sales of passenger car and light truck tires and subsidiaries that specialize in medium truck, motorcycle and racing tires. With headquarters in Findlay, Ohio, Cooper Tire has manufacturing, sales, distribution, technical and design facilities within its family of companies located in 10 countries around the world. For more information, visit Cooper Tire's web site at: www.coopertire.com.
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Cooper Kenda workers inspect tires at the plant in Kunshan,
in gSu Province, about one hour west of Shanghai.
In August, Cooper Kenda Tire achieved a major milestone by building and curing more than 10,000 tires a day. This is
a significant accomplishment, considering CKT has only been in production for 17
months.
This is the most successful ramp-up program ever achieved by Cooper, said
Hal Miller, president of Cooper™s International Tire Division. The team has
reached a monthly schedule that has never been seen before at our other plants. This is due to the dedicated Cooper Kenda team, to leadership by (CKT General Manager)
John Ebert and to significant support from Cooper North American and European operations.
John Ebert, who is currently on medical leave, said he was extremely proud of
the accomplishment.
The plant, which is a state-of-the-art tire manufacturing facility, has already reached 25 percent of its ultimate capacity in just 17 months, John said. What was even more impressive to John was that this 10,000-tire milestone was reached a month or two ahead of plan.
Cooper Kenda Tire is a 50/50 joint venture between Cooper Tire and Kenda Tire. Cooper has developed a relationship with Kenda, a Taiwanese tire manufacturer with manufacturing facilities in Taiwan, Vietnam and China. Together, they
decided to build an ultra-modern tire manufacturing facility to produce radial passenger and radial light truck tires for worldwide sales. CKT is located in the city of Kunshan in JiangSu Province, about one hour west of Shanghai, with a population of 1.4 million people.
CKT broke ground Feb. 19, 2006, and began production March 21, 2007.
In John Ebert's absence, Jim Fitzgerald, Tupelo plant manager, has been keeping the momentum going at CKT.
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