China's Keter Tire opens U.S. office, hires Rick Phillips as CEO

FRANKLIN, Tenn. — China's Qingdao Keter Tyre Co. Ltd. has opened a U.S. sales office in Franklin and hired tire industry veteran Rick Phillips to be CEO of the new unit, Keter Tire USA (KTUSA).

Mr. Phillips brings 40-plus years of tire industry experience to the new position, which involves launching Keter's NeoTerra brand — which recently went into mass production in Thailand — in the U.S., the company said.

Mr. Phillips said the NeoTerra ("New World") brand was developed for the U.S. market and features full lines of passenger, light truck and commercial truck tires backed by "one of the best warranties in the industry," including a money-back guarantee.

"It's certainly been a challenging environment to start a new business and to introduce a new brand," Mr. Phillips said, "but we are very pleased with the early success we've enjoyed. We're actually pretty bullish on the rest of the year as we continue to build our distribution network and assemble our team."

During the U.S. company's startup phase, orders will be containerload only, a spokesperson said.

Mr. Phillips comes to Keter (a Hebrew word for "crown" that rhymes with "better") from Disruptive Concepts Consulting, a firm he founded in 2019. Prior to that the spent two years with Triangle Tire Corp. and 18 years with Yokohama Tire Corp.

Qingdao Keter Tyre, founded in 2009 in Qingdao, China, specializes in exporting a number of Chinese tire brands. It claimed sales of $50 million in 2014.

The company also distributes the Keter and Intertrac brands of passenger, truck, OTR and specialty tires.

KTUSA said it sources from third-party producers around the world to offer a full line of OTR, specialty, ATV and rubber track products, as well as steel and aluminum wheels and specialty tire industry equipment.

For the Neoterra line, Keter has contracted with Jiangsu General Science Technology Co. Ltd. to have the Neoterra line produced at its recently opened factory in Thailand. Keter stresses that it designs and develops its own products in-house.

"Our goal is to be the most complete supplier in the tire industry and to be widely regarded as a valuable resource by our strategic partners," Mr. Phillips said.

For more information on Keter Tire USA or the NeoTerra line, contact [email protected].