Kenda Rubber Co. has acquired Starco Europe after a series of meetings to take partnership to a higher level. Kenda has been a Starco supplier since 1982.
“We recently launched our ‘Focus on Europe’ strategy…the acquisition of Starco is a natural step to more quickly establish a platform which gives Kenda better access to the market in this region,” said Jimmy Yang, vice chairman of Kenda Rubber and president of Kenda USA. “Kenda has strong market share in USA in the trailer, lawn and garden, golf car, and utility vehicle tire segments and would like to grow its market share in these areas through the acquisition of Starco, who is one of the leading players in this area in Europe.”
The Starco team will now report to Kenda USA and will continue to operate in the same segments and markets as today while maintaining current their supplier base.
“Existing supplier partnerships will remain key and the plan will be to continue to develop these relationships even further,” said Richard Todd, chief executive officer at Starco.
The companies believe that Starco’s polyurethane expertise and wheel design combined with Kenda’s high level of tire development will give the group a unique position in the market.
