The Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company was founded by Frank Seiberling in 1898 on the Little Cuyahoga River in Akron Ohio. He borrowed thirty five hundred dollars from his brother-in-law to start the company. The company was named after Charles Goodyear who discovered the rubber vulcanization process in 1839. The company started to build their first factory in 1902 in Akron. In 1903 Paul Litchfield, a factory manager received a patent on the tubeless tire. In 1904 the company became a leader in automobile, carriage, and bicycle tires. In 1909, the company became involved in making airplane tires. Goodyear employs 73,000 people in 22 countries and operates 53 facilities globally. Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company’s mission statement is “To increase the value of our brands for everyone with market driven innovation, delivering the highest quality tires, related products and services, for our customers and consumers”. Strengths
Goodyear has evolved as a leader in tire manufacturing and retreading across the globe. The company is the third largest tire company in the world with revenue surpassing twenty billion dollars. Goodyear is the best-selling tire in North America. Goodyear has very strong growth potential in all markets. This is a positive strength because competition is fierce and there is no room for error in the tire business due to the low profit margins on tires. Goodyear remains very profitable despite competition and that has Goodyear in a strong position for future plans and innovations.
Goodyear has a strong liquidity position in the market. In the last couple of years Goodyear has advanced their position and had strong revenue streams to bolster their short and long term goals. Over the first three months of 2013 Goodyear’s revue was at a record 5.5 billion dollars. Goodyear managed to achieve this even when raw materials and weaker demand was present. This demonstrates that Goodyear is financially sound, beating
References: Goodyear Corporate website (2012). Retrieved from: http://www.goodyear.com/corporate/about/ Cars Direct, (2009, August 17). Retrieved from: http://www.carsdirect.com/car-repair/the-7-best-tire- companies-out-there Ranker, (2012), Retrieved from: http://www.ranker.com/list/world_s-top-10-tire-manufacturers-by-2010-revenue/micksgarage TR & W, (2010) Retrieved from: http://www.tiresrimsandwheels.com/top-tire-manufacturers/ Market Research.com http://www.marketresearch.com/map/prod/2532908.html Consumer reports, (2012, April), Retrieved from: http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/tires/buying-guide.htm Event Brief of Q1 2012 Goodyear Tire & Rubber Earnings Conference Call - Final Fair Disclosure Wire (2012, April)