Nokian Tyres - History

History

Early corporate predecessors of Nokian Tyres are the Nokia Aktiebolag (Nokia Company) and Suomen Kumitehdas Oy (Finnish Rubber Works Ltd.). In 1865, mining engineer Fredrik Idestam established a groundwood pulp mill on the banks of the Tammerkoski rapids in the town of Tampere, in southwestern Finland. In 1868, Idestam built a second mill near the town of Nokia, 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) west of Tampere by the Nokianvirta River, which had better resources for hydroelectric production. In 1871, with the help of his close friend, the statesman Leo Mechelin, Idestam renamed and transformed his mills into a share company, founding the Nokia Company.

Suomen Gummitehdas Oy was founded in 1898 and began manufacturing car tyres in 1932. The Hakkapeliitta tyre name was introduced in 1936, and some tyres sold under the Nokian tyre name still use the Hakkapeliitta brand name. Hakkapeliitta is a (Finnish) historiographical term used for a Finnish light cavalryman in the service of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden during the Thirty Years' War (1618–48). In 1967, Suomen Kumitehdas Oy (originally called Suomen Gummitehdas Oy) merged with Suomen Kaapelitehdas (Finnish Cable Works) and the forest and power industry company Nokia Aktiebolag to create Nokia Corporation.

Nokian Tyres (which had manufactured tyres under the Nokia brand; Nokian is the genitive) was split from the Nokia Corporation when Nokian Tyres Limited was created in 1988 as a joint venture company. Nokian Tyres PLC shares were floated on the Helsinki Stock Exchange (OMX Helsinki) in 1995. Nokia, which became the largest mobile telephone manufacturer in 1998, ended its ownership interest in Nokian Tyres in 2003, selling its holding of 2 million shares to Bridgestone Europe NV/SA, a subsidiary of the Japanese tyre manufacturer Bridgestone, for U.S. $73.2 million. This made Bridgestone the largest shareholder, with a 18.9% stake, later diluted to 16.8%. Bridgestone announced that Nokian Tyres would be operated independently, but it would consider complementing the company's product development, testing, and distribution.

Production of bicycle tyres and inner tubes started in 1974 in Lieksa, Finland. In 2004, Nokian Tyres sold its bicycle tyre business to Suomen Rengastehdas Oy for €3.6 million. This successor company remains one of the few manufacturers of tungsten carbide-studded snow tyres for bicycles. Suomen Rengastehdas continues to produce bicycle tyres, including all Nokian-branded bicycle tyres.

Nokian Tyres set up a joint venture, Ordabasy – Nokian Tyres JSC, with Ordabasy Corporation JSC, a multi-industry Kazakh company, to manufacture passenger car tyres at a planned new factory in Kazakhstan. The venture started in 2007, but the manufacturing project was put on hold in early 2009. Nokian Tyres was to provide technical expertise in tyre manufacturing, and the products were to be sold in Kazakhstan, Central Asia, Russia, and Eastern Europe. In 2009, the Nokian Hakkapeliitta tyre model line received the "List of trademarks with a reputation" status by the National Board of Patents and Registration of Finland.