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Cooper and Kenda are ending their joint marketing and distribution arrangement.
Since November of 2004, Cooper has been overseeing the marketing of Kenda radial car and light truck tires in the United States and Canada. The agreement granted Cooper exclusive rights to handle the Kenda brand. Kenda USA Corp. will now be taking over those functions and covering customer service issues. The Cooper-Kenda connection officially concludes on May 1.
The transition for Cooper’s tire dealers will be addressed “with a minimum of change and disruption so that customer service will not be affected,” according to Phil Caris, vice president of sales and marketing at Cooper. Both companies will continue as partners in a Chinese tire plant several other technological collaborations.
“The decision to end our marketing and distribution relationship was a mutual decision between Cooper and Kenda,” says Caris. “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,” he adds.
“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,” Caris notes.
“Over the past few years, the Kenda-Cooper relationship has been beneficial for all parties involved,” says Jimmy Yang, Kenda USA’s president. “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 U.S. without having to change our distribution infrastructure,” he reports.
“The Cooper-Kenda partnership has definitely added value for the Kenda brand and will continue to help Kenda’s growth in the tire market,” Yang points out.
Kenda Rubber Industrial Co., Ltd. is headquartered in Yuanlin, Taiwan. It produces tires and inner tubes for numerous global segments, including automotive, truck, bicycle, motorcycle, agricultural, trailer, lawn and garden, ATV, golf car and fork lift. The company also manufactures rubber membranes serving the water retention and commercial roofing industries under the Pond King and StaFast Roofing brands. Kenda employs more than 7,000 people and has five plants located in Taiwan, Vietnam and China.
For more information, visit www.kendausa.com and www.coopertire.com.
