- Dunlop (brands)
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This article is about brands named for John Dunlop, inventor of the pneumatic tyre. For the Dunlop brand of guitar products, see Dunlop Manufacturing.
Dunlop was originally a brand of tyre produced by the Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Company at the end of the 19th century, taking its name from John Dunlop. The brand is now used for many other products either derived from rubber or with a looser connection to rubber.
Ownership of the brand has become fragmented over the years. Three main events contributed to this fragmentation:
- in 1899, the Dunlop company sold its Australian branch. As a result, Dunlop Australia acquired the rights to the brand in Australia.[1]
- in 1985, Dunlop Rubber sold the rights to the Dunlop brand of automobile tyre.
- between 1996 and 1998, BTR plc (which acquired Dunlop Rubber in 1985) sold a number of companies which used the Dunlop brand for their products.
The Dunlop brand today
Today, the Dunlop brand and logo is used for these products:
Automobile
- Dunlop Tyres and Dunlop Tires:
- owned in Europe and North America by Dunlop Tyres, a joint venture 75% owned by Goodyear and 25% by Sumitomo Rubber Industries (the result of a 1999 deal)[2]
- owned 100% by Goodyear in Australia (the result of deals in 1987 and 2006 with Dunlop Australia)[1]
- owned by Sumitomo in Asia (the result of the acquisition from Dunlop Rubber in 1985)
- owned in India by the Ruia Group[3] (the result of the sale of Dunlop India in 1984 to the Jumbo Group, which sold it on in 2005)
- owned in South Africa by Apollo Tyres Ltd of India (the result of a sale by BTR in 1998)[4]
Aerospace
- Dunlop Aircraft Tyres, an independent company in Birmingham, England (sold by BTR in 1996; 75% of the company is currently owned by AAC Capital Partners)[5]
- Dunlop Aerospace, including Dunlop Equipment and Dunlop Precision Rubber, owned by Meggitt plc[6] (the result of a sale by BTR in 1998)
Industrial products
- Dunlop Conveyor Belting, part of Fenner Dunlop Conveyor Belting Worldwide, providing a range of conveyor belt systems[7]
- Dunlop Extrusions, a brand of rubber extrusions owned by an independent company in Manchester, England[8]
- Dunlop Fabrications, a brand of flexible fuel and water tanks owned by Trelleborg AB of Sweden[9]
- Dunlop Hiflex, a brand of hydraulic hoses and pipes[10]
- Dunlop Oil & Marine, a brand of rubber hose for marine use, owned by Continental AG of Germany[11]
- Dunlop Rubber Mouldings, owned by Dunlop Industrial Products, a South African company sold by BTR in 1998[12]
- Dunlop Systems & Components, an independent company in Coventry, England, which manufacture the Dunlop Pneuride brand of rubber air spring bellows & air suspension systems[13]
Construction materials
- Dunlop Adhesives, a brand of tile adhesive and grouting, owned by Ardex GmbH (the result of a sale by BTR in 1996)
- Dunlop Industries of Kenya, who produce PVC floor tiles (sold by BTR in 1996)[14]
Furniture
- Dunlopillo, a brand of mattress and latex foam for furniture, owned in the UK by Hilding Anders[15] and elsewhere by Dunlop Latex Foam Ltd (sold by BTR in 1997)[16]
Sporting goods
- Dunlop Sport, a brand of golf and tennis equipment, sporting footwear and other products
- in Australia and New Zealand owned by Pacific Brands, sold by Pacific Dunlop (formerly Dunlop Australia) in 2001[17]
- in Japan, Taiwan and Korea owned by SRI Sports Limited (a subsidiary of Sumitomo),[18] acquired as part of Dunlop Japan in 1963
- in the United States, owned by DNA (Housemarks) Limited, a joint venture company owned by Sports Direct and SRI USA, Inc (a subsidiary of Sumitomo).
- in the rest of the world rights to the brand are owned by Sports Direct as a result of the acquisition of Dunlop Slazenger from Cinven in 2004.[19]
Footwear
- Dunlop Protective Footwear, a brand of waterproof footwear and safety boots, owned by the Dutch company Hevea, which acquired the brand in 1996.[20]
In the US and Canada, the rights to the Dunlop brand are now owned by a joint venture company owned by Sports Direct and Sumitomo[21]
See also
References
- ^ a b History of Pacific Dunlop
- ^ Goodyear form 10-Q for quarter ended June 30, 1999, p.28
- ^ Hindu Business Online, 31 December 2005
- ^ Report, University of Natal, 2002 p.37
- ^ Dunlop Aircraft Tyres website
- ^ Dunlop Aerospace Braking Systems website
- ^ Dunlop Conveyor Belting website
- ^ Dunlop Extrusions website
- ^ Dunlop Fabrications website
- ^ Dunlop Hiflex website
- ^ Dunlop Oil & Marine website
- ^ Dunlop Rubber Mouldings website
- ^ http://www.dunlopsystems.com/index.php
- ^ Olympia Capital website
- ^ Dunlopillo website
- ^ Dunlop Latex Foam website
- ^ Dunlop Sport website
- ^ SRI Sports website
- ^ Sports Direct website
- ^ Hevea website
- ^ Sports Direct prospectus, 2007 p.147
Categories:- Brands
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