Sumitomo, Stamford set up Indian sales JV

ERJ staff report (DS)

Singapore -- Stamford Tyres and Sumitomo Rubber are to set up a sales joint venture in India. The company will be called Falken Tyre India Private Limited. Sumitomo will be the majority shareholder in the 60:40 venture.

The new company, Falken Tyre India Private Limited, will be established as a joint venture between Sumitomo Rubber Asia (Tyre) Pte Ltd., a subsidiary and Asia sales company of Sumitomo Rubber, and Stamford Tyres Corporation Ltd. in Singapore. The aim is to strengthen sales of replacement tyres in India, where the market is expected to keep growing. The new company will start business in April 2013. It is expected to employ around 70 people.

FTI will be setting up its corporate headquarters in India with employees stationed across the

country. It will leverage Sumitomo's

proprietary tyre technologies and Stamford's distribution capability to address the growing

needs of the Indian replacement tyre market. The physical presence of FTI will allow Stamford

Tyres to intensify its marketing efforts and establish Falken's brand name among consumers

in the Indian market.

Yasutaka Ii, Director and Senior Executive Officer of SRI said, “India is a market with huge

potential. We are delighted to continue our partnership with Stamford Tyres which has

a strong distribution track record, as part of our Group's expansion into new markets.

This new joint venture will allow the two companies to leverage on their expertise to

address the needs in the Indian market and tap onto this market's huge potential.”

Mr Wee Kok Wah, President of Stamford Tyres added, “At present, Stamford Tyres

distributes Falken tyres in markets such as Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia

and South Africa. This JV is another major milestone for Stamford Tyres and signifies

the next step in our long-standing relationship with Sumitomo.

This is an external link and should open in a new window. If the window does not appear, please check your pop-up blocking software. ERJ is not responsible for the content of external sites.

Press release from Stamford Tyres

Press release from Sumitomo