A new name and identity for a new time and era

MEDIA RELEASE

A new name and identity for a new time and era

Wellington, 23 March, 2009…One of New Zealand’s leading marketers, wholesalers and retailers of some of the world’s most popular and best-selling tyre brands has announced a new name and corporate identity to better represent the current and future direction of the business.

From today, Goodyear & Dunlop Tyres (NZ) Limited is the new trading name of South Pacific Tyres (NZ) Limited, the company that is custodian of the iconic Goodyear and Dunlop brands, as well as the Goodyear Auto Service Centre, Beaurepaires and Frank Allen Tyres branded retail stores.

“Goodyear and Dunlop are the two of the world’s leading tyre brands, so we are very pleased and proud that they form the basis of our new trading name and corporate identity,” said Goodyear & Dunlop Tyres Managing Director and CEO Judith Swales.

“The Goodyear & Dunlop Tyres name better reflects Goodyear’s ownership of our business whilst acknowledging the heritage and legacy that is synonymous with the Dunlop brand in New Zealand and Australia.”

Dunlop was first established in Australia in 1893 when a branch office of the Irish-based Dunlop Company was opened in Melbourne’s Chinatown district to market and sell pneumatic bicycle tyres, with a Christchurch office opening in 1897. Goodyear traces its roots in the region back to 1915 when executives of the US-based Goodyear Tire & Rubber formed a distribution company in Sydney, followed closely by branches in Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth and Wellington.

Over the following decades, both companies significantly expanded their operations to include tyre manufacturing in Melbourne, Sydney and Wellington, and built extensive retail operations throughout both New Zealand and Australia.

The two companies formally joined forces in 1987 with the formation of the South Pacific Tyres joint venture which manufactured and marketed passenger and commercial tyres for 22 years.

“We felt it important to have a name that better represents our culture and current and future direction, and clearly communicates to our customers who we are and what we do,” Ms Swales said.

“As a customer-focused business that is backed by such powerful and well-known retail and tyre brands, our priority is to continue to meet and exceed the tyre and related service needs of passenger and commercial tyre customers.

“We are fortunate to have the backing of the global Goodyear brand, which continues to research, develop and manufacture tyres with leading edge technology in world-class facilities around the world.

“We look forward to bringing to market many new and innovative products for passenger vehicle, four-wheel-drive, light truck and truck applications, and giving our customers the chance to experience the many benefits of products we have in development.”

“These are exciting times for Goodyear & Dunlop Tyres, under our new name, we look forward to remaining a direct and indirect employer of many thousands of Australians and New Zealanders for many years to come.”

ENDS

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