60 Tyre Asia April/May 2018
Adversities and setbacks only steeled
Chairman Onkar Kanwar and his son Vice-
President & Managing Director Neeraj
Kanwar to relentlessly pursue their dreams.
Even when they were confined to a single
plant making truck tyres, they had set their
sights on the bigger picture. They wanted
to see Apollo Tyres as a multinational
brand with global footprint.
At a personal and professional level, the
Kanwars are committed to growth not only
for the sake of expanding business andenhance shareholder value, but also to
corporate social responsibility emphasising
sustainability issues.
The Kanwars have consistently
demonstrated their iron-clad belief that
any venture that is sharply customer-
focussed can succeed. Careful planning
and execution – not swayed by adverse
circumstances and bottlenecks – are
fundamental requirements to rapid
business growth. Apollo Tyres is an
example of how corporate entities can
overcome adversarial situation and come
up on top.When Apollo Tyres forayed into Europe
in 2009, there was scepticism. It acquired
the subsidiary of a bankrupt Russian
company and took control of the Dutch
brand Vredestein Banden. In it the Kanwars
discovered the potential gem to grow the
business.
It was the same sense of discovering and
acquiring world-class companies that
prompted Apollo to look at Ohio-based
Cooper Tires to further develop Apollo’s
market reach. In 2013, sensing the fast-
growing lucrative US market, it made an
aggressive $2.5-billion bid for Cooper.
Neeraj Kanwar was confident that if the
deal had come through, it would have taken
Apollo on top the global league. The deal
failed because of opposition from Cooper’s
Chinese subsidiary.T
he Kanwars have
consistently demonstrated
their iron-clad belief that
any venture that is sharply
customer-focussed can
succeed. Careful planning
and execution – not swayed
by adverse circumstances
and bottlenecks – are
fundamental requirements
to rapid business growth.
Apollo Tyres is an example
of how corporate entities
can overcome adversarial
situation and come up on topCOVER STORY