Bridgestone (Canada) Inc. was established in September, 1972 as a wholly-owned Canadian sales and marketing subsidiary of Bridgestone Corporation, Tokyo, Japan.

Bridgestone, founded in 1931, has grown to become Japan's leading tire manufacturer and, with 19 plants, is one of the largest in the world. Through a balanced emphasis on technology, marketing and service, Bridgestone's mandate is to provide the best tires for every type of vehicle, from trucks, buses and passenger cars, to motorcycles, subways and monorails. Bridgestone's aircraft tires are used by more than 100 international airlines.

Today, Bridgestone's product lines extend beyond tires to include a diverse range of chemical and industrial rubber products and sporting goods. Sold in more than 150 countries, including Canada, Bridgestone tire and non-tire products are known for their superb quality and performance derived from strict dedication to quality control through all operations.

Production and quality control are maintained at high levels throughout Bridgestone in order to guarantee continued customer satisfaction. The manufacture of steel-radial truck and bus tires, for example, is a complex process requiring approximately 700 different kinds of materials. Bridgestone is the only Japanese tire manufacturer that produces its own fiber cords and steel cords, thus ensuring the superior construction of its steelradial truck and bus tires.

Research and development is the key to Bridgestone's strength. From its earliest years, Bridgestone has maintained a firm commitment to research and development (R&D) which, in turn, has led to the introduction of many sophisticated new products. Bridgestone currently allocates approximately four per cent of its annual net sales to R&D. As a result of these efforts, the number of Bridgestone's patent applications has been rising consistently, now exceeding 1,000 annually.

Headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, Bridgestone (Canada) Inc. markets a variety of tire products through its five distribution centres in Vancouver, Edmonton, Mississauga, Montreal and Moncton. Bridgestone tires are available through an independent dealer network of approximately 500 outlets, including Service de Pneus CTR Ltee and Crown Tire Service Ltd. both tire distributors wholly-owned by Bridgestone (Canada) Inc.

Headquartered in Quebec City, Service de Pneus CTR Ltee is one of Canada's largest dealership chains with over 32 outlets. CTR sells a variety of passenger, truck, off-the-road and industrial tires, has large retreading facilities and offers frame and truck alignment services.

Crown Tire Service Ltd. is headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta. Operations consist of 14 sales outlets, truck and bus tire retreading plants, and one off-the-road tire retreading facility.
 

Bridgestone Corporate Headquarters, Mississauga, Ontario.

Hideoki Inose, President of Crown Tire Service Ltd. and Conrad F. Johnson, President of Service de Pneus CTR Ltee., both report directly to Ted Kakuma, President of Bridgestone (Canada) Inc.

By maintaining high quality of products and by fulfilling its responsibilities as a global corporate citizen, Bridgestone aims to honour its motto: "Serving Society With Products of Superior Quality". As a dynamic, challenging and innovative corporation, Bridgestone will continue to enhance its competitiveness in the future.