Where Are Cooper Tires Made?
The Cooper Tires company was founded 108 years ago back in 1914 and was first based in Findlay Ohio exclusively. However, as widespread production in the US is not exactly financially feasible, Cooper tires moved their production elsewhere. So, where are Cooper tires made?
Where Are Cooper Tires Made
Each year, Cooper makes around 250,000 to 300,000 tires in Hangzhou. China. This comes as no surprise as many tire companies these days manufacture their tires in China due to many reasons.
Cooper Tires intended for the US market are made right here in the US across four factories located in Ohio, Georgia, Arkansas, and Mississippi. For the European market, Cooper makes tires in the UK and Serbia while the Latin America market gets its tires from Mexican Cooper factories.
What Are The Pros Of Making Tires In China?
- Lower Production Costs
- Scalability and Rate of Production
- International Expansion
- Business Pedigree
Is It Cheaper To Make Tires In China?
In business, it’s all about profit margins which is why so many brands out there make their goods in China as China is a place with extremely low production costs. Your goal is to lower the price for the end user by making your production process cheaper. This enables you to earn more money while still offering your goods at a discounted price.
The cost of the final product is arguably the most important factor to an end customer, and making your tires in China enables you to capitalize on that.
Is It Easier To Scale Tire Production In China?
No other country in the world has so many factories and such a diverse workforce as China. This enables tiremakers to scale up their production to levels that can’t be achieved in the Western hemisphere, at least not as cheap.
Also, Chinese workers and Chinese factories tend to produce goods in bulk which enables them to speed up production to amazing levels. Because they have lots of experience in bulk manufacturing, Chinese factories are used to making hundreds of thousands of products each year.
Is It Easier To Expand Internationally If You Make Your Tires In China?
The Asian market might just as well be the fastest-growing market in the world because more than 4.5 billion people live in Asia. If you want to sell your goods in China, a land in which more than 1.4 billion people live, the cheapest way to do it is to move your production there.
Asia is such a huge market that most automakers these days make special models which are only being sold in Asia and nowhere else.
Is It Easier To Sell Tires If They Are Produced In China?
Having a well-developed network of factories in China enables you to capitalize on many other aspects of tire-making. Most smaller tire brands and many large tire brands typically outsource their production to China which means that many US brands gladly work with a brand that has a well-established network of distribution contacts across China.
Chinese manufacturers are typically welcoming to smaller companies from abroad, as long as they are meeting the minimum.
What Are The Cons Of Making Tires In China?
- Intellectual Property
- Minimum Order Quantities Are Huge
- Logistics and Shipping
- Quality Control
Is It Risky To Make Tires In China?
A few years ago, China was considered the Mekka of intellectual property theft which makes doing business in China really difficult. The country has made strides in this field as most brands are better protected, but not to a degree we are used to seeing in Western countries.
This means that there is a greater risk of counterfeiting tires and stealing intellectual property in China than it is in the US. We are all aware that some domestic and non-domestic Chinese companies are willing to steal designs in China, but aren’t willing to do so elsewhere.
How Many Tires Are Made In China?
In 2020, China produced upwards of 800 million tires which is a colossal number that comes with its own grain of salt. However, this means that most Chinese tire companies are only doing business if the minimum order quantities are huge. The demand for Chinese factories is huge which enables them to choose a brand willing to produce the heights number of tires each year.
If a specific tire maker isn’t able to meet those demands, they are forced to pay higher costs or are forced to move their production elsewhere.
Is It Difficult To Ship Tires From China?
At first glance, one would think that making tires in the US is the cheaper way to go if you want to sell those tires in the US, but that is often far from the truth. US labor costs are up to 40% more expensive in some industries than they are in China which is why economies of scale sometimes simply can’t afford to make goods in the US.
It is indeed more difficult to make tires in other parts of the world and ship them to consumers in the US, but it still is a lot cheaper which is, of course, more important.
Do Chinese-made Tires Lack Quality?
Premium tire brands that have been producing in China for decades have a really high standard when it comes to quality. Even so, most goods made in the Western world are made following higher quality standards which is to be expected as China makes goods in bulk while the Western world does not, at least not on a comparable scale. As such, some tires that are made in China aren’t as premium as those made in other parts of the world.
Does Cooper Make Tires For Other Brands?
Yes, Cooper Tire factories don’t only manufacture Cooper tires as they also make tires for brands such as Mickey Thompson, Dean, Roadmaster, Mastercraft, and Starfire. Back in the day, Cooper was also the manufacturer of all Sears Guardsman tires.
This is a rather common occurrence across many factories around the world as not all brands have their own production facilities. Some brands even buy components from their fiercest rivals, a prime example of that is Apple buying as much as 82% of all of their displays from none other than Samsung.
Who Owns Cooper Tires?
Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company bought Cooper Tires back in February 2022 after the two companies finalized a massive $2.8 billion deal. Both of these companies are from Ohio which means that Cooper Tires is still a 100% US brand. The reason why Goodyear bought Cooper tires is to solidify its position at the very top of the global tire industry.
This purchase has almost doubled Goodyear’s presence in China which ties in perfectly with previous parts of this article as a presence in the fast-growing Asian market is somewhat of a goldmine not only because of the factories, but a big part is to do with logistics and a whole load of distribution networks which have been around for almost 20 years.
This also gives Goodyear the chance to better utilize as many as 2,500 distribution centers in the US alone which should also increase their profit margins by quite a bit. Because the US and China represent as much as 30% of the entire global tire market, it makes sense perfect sense for a brand such as Goodyear to increase its presence in both markets.
Are US-made Cooper Tires Better Than Chinese-made Cooper Tires?
There is literally no difference between US-made Cooper Tires and Chinese-made Cooper Tires as there shouldn’t be. However, there are some reports that US-made Cooper Tires are indeed much better than those manufactured in China, but that is not confirmed by any credible source.
However, some Chinese-based companies that sell cheap tires do use much less sophisticated manufacturing techniques and rubber compounds of poorer quality. This is to be expected as these tires are advertised as such. However, if you come across tires made by premium brands that don’t seem to be as well-made as the rest, chances are that you came across a counterfeit.
As mentioned above, China is a place where you can find a factory that makes genuine shoes for a large shoe brand next to a company that makes fakes with pretty much the same machines, materials, and methods, but lacking in quality and some other aspects.
Conclusion
At the end of our “Where are Cooper Tires made” article, we can confidently state that Cooper makes its tires in the US, Mexico, the UK, Serbia, and China. However, it seems like labor costs and other geopolitical reasons are slowly, but surely moving many large companies away from Asia so we could potentially see Cooper and many other tire companies do the same.
Be that as it may, it is really difficult and expensive to move such a large operation from one location to the other, so we will have to wait and see if that is truly going to be the case. However, if you want to know how Cooper Tires compare against Goodyear tires, be sure to find out!