BRIDGESTONE TIRES

Bridgestone`s dream is to become a truly global enterprise and to establish the Bridgestone brand as the undisputed world No. 1 brand in both name and substance. Across the globe, the entire Bridgestone team is focused on achieving this goal.

The history of Bridgestone America dates back to the two separate companies that merged to form Bridgestone Tire company. The first one is Firestone Tire & Rubber Company, that was founded in August 1900 by Harvey Firestone and was headquartered in Akron, Ohio. The second one is the Bridgestone Tire Company, Ltd., founded in 1931 by Shojiro Ishibashi in Japan. The first Bridgestone tire was produced on 9 April 1930, by the Japanese "Tabi" Socks Tire Division (actually made jika-tabi). One year later on 1 March 1931, the founder, Shojiro Ishibashi, made the "Tabi" Socks Tire Division independent and established the Bridgestone Tire Co., Ltd. in the city of Kurume, Fukuoka Prefecture. "Bridgestone" was named after the name of the founder, Shojiro Ishibashi (Ishi = Stone, Bashi = Bridge). Foregoing dependence on European and North American technology, the Bridgestone Tire Co., Ltd. set its eyes on manufacturing tires based largely on Japanese technology. The fledgling company experienced many difficulties in the areas of technology, production, and sales in the early days. Eventually, improvements were achieved in quality and manufacturing processes which led to the business rapidly expanding in domestic and overseas markets.