Doublestar Group poised to re-enter U.S. market

PANAMA CITY, Panama—It won't be long before the first batch of tires will be manufactured at Doublestar Group's newest facility, a factory in Cambodia.

Linda Deng, vice president and chair of Doublestar Cambodia, said the company will be producing passenger car radial (PCR) tires at the factory for customers by the end of August. Construction started on the plant in May 2023, and a year later the first truck/bus radial (TBR) product rolled off the floor of the 4.3-million-sq-ft. factory.

"(Customers) are very glad now that we can send a tire from the Cambodia factory to the U.S., Brazil and many other countries," Deng told Tire Business in an exclusive interview during the recent Latin Tyre & Auto Parts Show, held in Panama.

The Qingdao, China-based company said its tire plant in Cambodia's Snuol District will make products mostly for the American market, but it also plans to sell those products in the Middle East and Southeast Asia.

The new factory, designed with a nameplate annual capacity of 7 million passenger and 1.5 million truck/bus tires, is a joint venture involving Doublestar and Cambodia's U.B.E. Development Co. Ltd.

The facility, which represents a $210 million investment, is Doublestar's third plant, and first outside of China.

Qingdao Doublestar Group also has a controlling interest (45-percent stake) of Kumho Tire Co. Inc., South Korea's second largest tire manufacturer, and No. 13 worldwide, with sales revenue of $3.1 billion last year. Kumho Tire is a holding subsidiary of Qingdao Doublestar.

Qingdao Doublestar Industrial Co. Ltd., meanwhile, ranks No. 46—dropping 14 places from 2022—with global sales of $658 million in 2023.

According to Deng, truck/bus tire capacity at the new Cambodia plant could be reached by year-end, while car tire capacity is expected to come on stream next June.

The plant will manufacture Doublestar and Headway brand tires during the first stage, as well as some private brands. Among the private-brand customers is Hanksugi Japan Tyre International Co. Ltd., which distributes Hanksugi-brand TBR products in the U.S.

Kumho-branded products are not planned for production in the first stage, Deng said, but hinted it might happen in the future.

Late last year, executives at Kumho Tire USA told dealers at its annual meeting that the supply of commercial tires in North America sells out annually as a result of limited capacity. It remains to be seen whether Doublestar will help fill that void at the Cambodia plant by producing Kumho-branded TBR products there.

Kumho operates eight plants globally: three each in South Korea and China, one in Vietnam and one in Macon, Ga. Total capacity is around 63 million units annually. Kumho is building a smart factory in Korea, which will be dedicated to manufacturing electric vehicle and premium original equipment product, and recently said it was evaluating whether to build a plant in Europe.

One new product to be built at the Cambodia plant eventually will be Doublestar's electric-vehicle (EV) tire for the U.S. market, being designed initially in the six most popular sizes.

Deng said the product is popular in China, and Doublestar expects the North American version to replicate that.

Doublestar's Cambodia plant offers two huge advantages for the tire maker, Deng said.

First, tires produced there aren't subject to a tariffs, as they are for products manufactured in China.

Secondly, the plant is situated in Southeast Asia, an area filled with plantations that grow and harvest natural rubber.

"So it is very close to the natural resources needed to make tires," Deng said.

Doublestar first entered the U.S. market in 2010, but soon thereafter duties curtailed sales.

Deng said the company intends to be even more successful this time, with products that are more durable, feature better rolling resistance and are safer for consumers.

This time, Deng said, the company better understands how to sell its products in the U.S. market, working alongside its U.S.-based dealers.

"We are exited about being there again," she said.