In 2014, Zivojin Sekulic was presenting a concept about Serbia as a future hot spot for tyre production in Shandong, in China, one of the world’s biggest tyre production province. By then, nobody was bullish on Serbia and saw the country as the next tyre production hub, but Sekulic applied analysis and research methods to support his prediction.

Sekulic has been with the industry for over a decade, and has been responsible for developing, managing and supporting operations in  Europe, Asia, and the USA.

Several reasons could support Sekulic's claims. One of the reasons for that prediction was geopolitical relations between China, USA, EU and Euroasia. To de-risk trade tension, many tyre companies are exploring alternative production locations, and Serbia is emerging to be a viable place to target major markets. Also, Also, 'made in EU' effects are needed for OEM contracts which also help to brand building.

Having those reasons in mind, Sekulic forecast that Chinese tyre companies will come to the Eastern and South-Eastern Europe to setup tyre plants to avoid anti-dumping duties, apply made in EU effect to their brand and to get some OEM contracts as they need to be close enough to automotive plants due to specific logistic delivery contracts.

Five years later, Linglong Tire in 2019 started to build a tyre plant in Serbia with an investment of almost one billion USD. "Serbia is China's first strategic partner in central and eastern Europe and has a favourable environment for development and investment," said the Chinese tyre company. After the completion of the project, the annual output of various high-performance radial tyre will reach 13.62 million units, with yearly revenue of $ 600 million.

In the same year just a few months later, another Asian Tyre producer, Toyo Tire announced that it will setup a plant in Serbia.  The Japanese company will invest around 3.91 million euros in the plant, which will produce tyres for passenger vehicles with an annual capacity of five million tyres. Toyo Tire will start construction of the Serbian Plant in May 2020, and manufacturing operations are expected start in January January 2022, with a capacity of five million tyres annually (based on tyres for passenger vehicles) by the summer of 2023.

Cooper Tire Serbia, a subsidiary of Cooper Tire & Rubber is also increasing production capacity at its Kruševac tyre manufacturing plant. With a strategic manufacturing footprint investment of approximately $55 million in equipment upgrades and facility expansion, the project will increase the size of the Kruševac facility to more than 882,000 square feet.

Cooper Tire Serbia will produce new, larger diameter tyres being demanded in Europe and other global markets. Total annual production capacity at the Kruševac plant will increase by approximately one-third after this expansion, which is expected later this year and will establish a footprint which could further double capacity with additional equipment and people.

"We can say that 2019 was an amazing year for the tyre Industry of Serbia. With already four tyre manufacturing plants of Michelin, Copper Tire, Mitas and Trayal, the country will have two more manufacturing plants soon. That is a huge success for Serbia as we all know that even countries with a bigger population and bigger size have lesser number of tyre plants in Europe," says Zivojin Sekulic.

A chat with Zivojin Sekulic:

Why are tyre companies showing increasing interest in Serbia for setting up plants – and generally in eastern Europe?

The reason for setting up tyre plants in Serbia is because of its specific geopolitical status. Serbia is in Europe, but not in the EU. That means particular goods produced in Serbia can be exported with 0% duty to EU, Russia, USA and countries of CEFTA and EFTA agreements and that's the market of almost one billion people. Comparing to anti-dumping duties for tyres produced in China, sounds like a good benefit, right?

Also, another reason is the label of “Made in EU” for tyre brands. The “Made in EU” effects help tyre companies to become recognisable and increase the prices, comparing to prices of tyres produced in China, and that means more significant profit.

Take the example of Hankook and their plant in Hungary. Only a few years after setting up their plant in Hungary they were selling more than 30% of their total annual production in EU and today with OEM contracts, excellent marketing strategy and outstanding R&D teams, they are in the race to become premium brand. So, imagine one day, maybe in five to eight years from today, Linglong can be close to the premium tyre brand and with the right strategy and marketing activities, if they decide to go that way.

One more reason is OEM contracts. Before setting up the plant in Serbia, Linglong signed a deal with VW and Renault, and now tyres produced in the Chinese company's tyre plant in Serbia will be delivered to these two automotive giants.

What benefits/ incentives that Serbia offers?

There are several benefits that country like Serbia is ready to offer to foreign investors. But I would like to highlight the benefits in general, not to go deeper in an analysis of specific incentives as that depends from situation to situation.

For example, the government is offering land where investors can set up a plant free of charge. There are also some tax incentives for more significant investments which are happening in the tyre industry. For instance, Cooper Tire's expansion project is supported by around $8 million in incentives provided by the Serbian government. Some investors can even get incentives per each employee that they will hire (basically like cashback card ). So, a general conclusion is that country like Serbia is really generous to foreign investors, and they should have that in mind.

Which companies are in the process of setting up?

At this moment Linglong is building the tyre plant in the city of Zrenjanin and Toyo announced that they will start building a plant in the city of Indjija very soon.

On the other side, there are major tyre companies - Mitas, Michelin, Cooper Tire, Trayal, which are producing tyres the country.

What's the future of tyre industry in Serbia?

Even I was right six years ago with a prediction that Asian tyre producers will setup tyre plants in Serbia in the near future that doesn't mean I will be right this time. But I genuinely believe that in Serbia there is a place for one more tyre plant. Specifically, I am thinking about a TBR , Agri and OTR tyre plant that can be built in a place where now Trayal's old plant is located which is still working and producing tyres for agriculture.

Going forward, the future of the Serbian tyre industry will move in another direction. After setting up plants, we will see R&D centres and Testing grounds and facilities in the country. I am predicting this because, for R&D, you need to have an excellent workforce and Serbia really has top-notch engineers and amazing developers. Currently, Continental has an R&D centre in the city of Novi Sad where several hundreds of engineers are employed.

In my working experience of 14 years in the tyre industry and 10 years in the IT sector, and having experience from Silicon Valley, I can tell you that engineers, researchers and software developers in Serbia are outstanding and not expensive like in the western EU or Silicon Valley. So, I am pretty sure that future intelligent tyres that will be based on sensors and specific software and machine learning will be designed and produced in some of the R&D centres based in Serbia.

Regarding testing facilities. Well, why should someone go to Spain or to Nordics to test summer or winter tyres if they can do it in Serbia as our climate is changed, so we have very hot summer and extreme winter, the perfect climate for tyre testing.

Q) Please share some information on your Project SMARTY?

My project SMARTY is related to the tyre industry and related to the development of smart tyres and smart trucks.

Using my vast experience from the tyre industry and IT industry, with a team of developers, I am working on the development of specific sensors, hardware and software that will be used in vehicles to optimise the costs and to prevent the accidents with tyres. We want to predict failure before it happens.

Currently, we have some working models and, shortly, we will start with sales of those models. The final goal is to make SMARTY device to become necessary in every vehicle to become smart or autonomous. Sensors for truck and OTR tyres we will unveil soon.

(Zivojin Sekulic: z.sekulic@gaj.rs)

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Toyo Tire Corporation of Japan (Toyo Tire) has announced executive appointments at Toyo Tire Holdings of Americas Inc. (TTHA) and Nitto Tire U.S.A. Inc. (NTU), effective 1 October 2026. Keiko Brockel has become President and Chief Executive Officer at TTHA, while Angelo Naval has beeen promoted to President and Chief Executive Officer at NTU.

Brockel, the first woman and first American to hold the TTHA role, will oversee daily North American business operations. She joined NTU in 2008 and previously served as its President and Chief Executive Officer and President and Chief Operations Officer. Over 18 years at NTU, she has held various executive leadership positions, providing strategic oversight in sales, finance, supply chain and operations, contributing significantly to the company's growth and evolution.

Angelo Naval

Naval, formerly Vice President of Sales and Business Strategy at NTU, will now oversee its business operations. He joined NTU in 2000 and also served as Vice President of Product and Business Strategy. During his 24 years with the company, he has been instrumental in shaping the business, gaining deep understanding and a unique perspective on the Nitto brand, its customers and the markets it serves.

Takashi Shimizu, President & CEO, Toyo Tire Corporation, said, “On behalf of Toyo Tire, I would like to congratulate both Keiko Brockel and Angelo Naval on their well-earned new appointments and thank them for their invaluable contributions to the growth and success of Nitto Tire in the American market.”

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ContiTech, the group sector of Continental, has named Amanda Lacerda as its new Head of Communications, with effect from 15 September 2026. In this capacity, she will report directly to Diana Hoppe, who serves as Head of Human Relations and Communications at ContiTech. The appointment places Lacerda at the helm of the organisation’s global communications operations.

In her new position, Lacerda will act as a strategic partner focused on advancing business performance, transformation and brand value. Her responsibilities encompass corporate, executive and brand communications, alongside media and public relations, public affairs, employee communications and reputation management. She is tasked with maintaining a consistent narrative that bolsters ContiTech’s global reputation and aligns with its business priorities and strategic ambitions. Lacerda takes over from Claudia Lademann-Fleger, who has chosen to depart the company for external opportunities.

Lacerda arrives with over two decades of experience in communications, marketing, and public affairs. Her global leadership background includes roles across Brazil, Middle East, Sweden and Germany. Over her career, she has engaged with diverse international markets and industries, assisting organisations in strengthening their brands, managing change and cultivating meaningful relationships with key stakeholders.

Diana Hoppe, Head of Human Relations and Communications, ContiTech, said, “Effective communication plays a key role as ContiTech continues its transformation and prepares for its future as a standalone company. Amanda brings extensive international experience, strategic insight and domain expertise in communications that will help strengthen our brand, enhance our reputation and deepen engagement with employees, customers, partners and communities around the world. As we continue to build a strong and distinctive brand, her leadership will be instrumental in advancing our strategic ambitions and long-term success. I also want to thank Claudia for her many years of dedicated leadership and service to ContiTech, and I wish her every success in the future.”

Lacerda said, “I am excited to join ContiTech at such an important moment in its journey. ContiTech has a strong heritage, talented people and a clear vision for the future. I look forward to working with colleagues around the world to tell our story, support the company’s transformation and help create value through clear, authentic and engaging communications.”

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NEXEN TIRE has revamped the organisational framework for its European operations, merging its replacement equipment (RE) and original equipment (OE) divisions under a single executive leader. The restructuring is intended to deepen coordination throughout the region and reinforce the company’s ongoing expansion efforts there.

DC (DAE CHOONG) KIM has been named to head the newly formed European organisation. He returns to NEXEN TIRE Europe from Korea to assume this executive role, having first joined the European arm in 2014 and served as Vice President of Europe & Sales Marketing until 2024, then as Executive Vice President of Global Sales until September 2026.

In his new capacity, KIM will manage the combined European RE and OE sales organisation, fostering closer alignment between the two areas and sharpening NEXEN TIRE’s overall market approach. His leadership is expected to bolster customer focus, business development and long-term growth across the region.

Additionally, JEFF (JAE HOON) ROH, formerly Vice President of Europe Sales & Marketing, becomes Vice President of Global Sales Planning. He will help Nexen Tire offices worldwide maximise performance, with emphasis on US and Europe, and refine global channel strategy. The new structure and appointment came in force on 1 October.

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Grismer Tire & Auto Service, a tyre and automotive service centre operator backed by CenterOak Partners LLC, has named Chris Blanchette as Chief Executive Officer and Mark Hedstrom as Chief Financial Officer. The announcement marks a significant leadership transition for the portfolio company.

Blanchette arrives with over two decades of senior leadership experience in multi-site consumer services, specialising in operations, strategy and business development. He most recently served as Chief Executive Officer of Service Minds, a residential electrical, plumbing and HVAC services provider. His background also includes serving as Chief Operating Officer of QAS, which operates Valvoline Instant Oil Change locations, along with senior operational positions at Advance Auto Parts, Bridgestone Retail Operations and Best Buy.

Hedstrom brings more than three decades of finance expertise to his new role. He previously held the Chief Financial Officer position at W.S. Connelly & Co., a multi-regional specialty distributor, and has also served as Chief Financial Officer for several private equity-backed consumer and distribution companies.

Eric Holter, Managing Director, CenterOak, said, “Chris Blanchette brings highly relevant leadership experience in the automotive aftermarket. He has led complex, multi-location organisations and understands how to translate operational discipline into sustainable growth. Together, Chris and Mark add important depth to Grismer’s leadership team as the Company pursues expansion in existing and new markets.”

Blanchette said, “Grismer’s 90-year history and the trust it has earned with customers set the Company apart. I am excited to join a business with such a strong legacy and see significant

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