Page 24 - TYM 2023-5

VIPs from from Sumitomo Rubber Asia (Tyre) Pte Ltd (SRAT) and Stamford Tyres (M) Sdn Bhd pay a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a visit to to to CS Kuantan on 6th September 2023 Takehiko Asai (3rd from from from left) left) Managing Director Sakie Takagi Sales & Marketing Manager Manager (1st from from from from left) left) left) Lee Kok Chiang (2nd from from from from from left) left) left) left) Assistant Manager Manager Manager from from from from from Sumitomo Rubber Asia (Tyre) Pte Ltd (SRAT) Ivan Reijan (6th from from from from from left) left) left) General Manager Manager and Ku Seng Yeow(7th from from from from from left) left) left) Head Head of of Sales Channel Development from from from from from from Stamford Tyres Malaysia Sdn Bhd (STM) Su Koi Kok (4th from from from from left) left) owner and Joyce Lai (5th from from from from left) left) Head Head of of Finance from from from from CS Kuantan Kuantan Tyre Service Centre Kuantan Kuantan committed to addressing these challenges and had strategic plans in in place for the the future “The presence of Chinese-branded tyres has intensified compe- tition in in in in in the the market posing a a a a a a a a a challenge to to the the company’s Falken tyre tyre brand Sumitomo Rubber focuses on on on offering a a a a a a a a a a a high-perfor- mance/value proposition to to to Falken tyre tyre enthusiasts The com- pany’s commitment to to to quality safety and and reliability sets it it it it it apart from Chinese branded tyres delivering performance equal to to to or or or better than other premium brand brand competitors ”
For years he he he he noted that that consumers continued to to to believe that that the the the ‘freshest tyre tyre is is the the the best’ over proper tyre tyre storage “Sumito- mo Rubber recognises the the the the importance of of educating consumers about the the significance of of proper tyre storage The company is is is actively working closely with distributors distributors on inventory manage- ment and distributorship efficiency to to to to to minimise the impact of this challenge It is is is is equally important to to to to help consumers make in- formed choices based on on on on tyre storage conditions rather than just the year of manufacture ”
The year year 2023 he he he commented could be considered the inaugural year year for Malaysia’s adoption of electric electric vehicles (EV) Many electric electric vehicle vehicle manufacturers such as Tesla BYD and other supply chains had announced plans to to establish a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a a presence in in in Malaysia Malaysia Further- more the the the Malaysian government continued to to pave the the the way for for electric cars through various schemes and and incentives Therefore the rise of of EVs was was expected expected to to accelerate and and by 2030 it it was was expected expected to to constitute 15 per cent of of all new passenger car sales The increase of EVs EVs in in the the country is expected to alter the the tyre tyre sales mix As As EVs EVs have specific tyre tyre requirements Asai said Su- mitomo Rubber was already prepared for the shift by launching
24 the tyreman 2023/5
a a a a a a a a a series of of EV EV tyres in in in in in Europe and China In response to to the growing adoption of of EVs in in in in in in Malaysia he he he revealed plans to to intro- duce similar EV EV tyre solutions in in in the near future “We would adapt to to to the the the changing market dynamics and cater to to to the the the the evolving needs of o the the the the automotive industry making sure that the the the company’s tyre offering remains relevant and aligned with emerging trends ”
he he concluded 企业联盟经常因趋势的变更而形成或解散，一些持久， 充满韧性、信任及卓有成效的合作伙伴关系成为业 界典范。住友橡胶与添福胶胎之间的合作就是其中之
一。
住友橡胶亚洲(轮胎)私人有限公司(SRAT)董事经理浅井岳彦 (Takehiko Asai)表示:“添福胶胎集团创始人黄国华在70年代 敲开了住友橡胶株式会社的大门。1975年，住友橡胶与添福胶胎 开始合作。从最初的大津轮胎小规模合作到后来发展成为区域合 作伙伴关系，主要涵盖东南亚市场。添福胶胎目前在23个国家分 销飞劲轮胎产品。”
在这段非同凡响的合作过程中，他表示两家公司不仅获得了成 功，而且还经历并战胜了各种挑战，包括周期性业务波动、亚洲 金融危机和全球金融危机。
“2012年，住友橡胶购买了添福胶胎的一些股份，这表明我们公 司坚定不移地致力于与这家备受推崇的公司建立长期的合作伙伴 关系。如今，添福胶胎仍然是我们在这个区域里重要的合作伙 伴。”他补充说。
2022年1月，浅井岳彦被委任为新加坡SRAT董事经理。他从1998 年加入住友橡胶时，开始涉足轮胎行业。在最初的15年里，他 在该公司的国内销售部门工作，负责销售和商业轮胎产品规 划。2014年，他成为住友橡胶总公司的产品规划经理，努力构建 全球的产品组合。他在产品规划和销售方面的丰富经验和领导能 力，使他具备了进一步发展这个区域业务所需要的洞察力和技 能。
在马来西亚实地考察期间，他抽空拜访了本地的三位飞劲代理 商---位于登嘉楼州Kerteh Kemaman的KM Road Master私人有限 公司、彭亨州关丹的CS关丹服务中心和马六甲的Soon Jaya轮胎 私人有限公司。这些代理商与马来西亚添福胶胎有着超过15年的 长期合作关系，同行的还有销售和营销经理高咲枝(Sakie Tak- agi)、SRAT 助理经理Lee Kok Jiang、马来西亚添福胶胎总经 理伊万雷詹(Ivan Reijan)和销售渠道开发部主管邱成耀。此 举旨在加强与代理商的联系并增进与他们的关系。
询及马来西亚市场对住友橡胶的重要性时，浅井岳彦强调了大马 在该公司区域战略中的重要地位。“马来西亚是东南亚三大新车 市场之一，拥有大量的中产阶级人口。截至2022年，全国的活跃 车辆登记量约为2 300万辆，同年汽车销量达到72万辆，创下大 马有史以来最高的工业总销量 (TIV)记录。
他补充说:“马来西亚是一个很有吸引力的市场，其特点是人均 对包括轮胎在内的汽车产品的强劲需求。”
他察觉到的其中一个趋势是人们越来越偏爱休旅车(SUV)和四 驱车(4X4)，反映出这两个领域拥有进一步增长的前景。这一 转变与住友橡胶产品组合，特别是打开了高价值轮胎替换市场的 飞劲品牌尤其吻合。