Kershaw assumes leadership at BKT USA

Effective Jan. 1, 2022, Doug Kershaw, vice president, will take over the leadership of the BKT USA team. He succeeds Minoo Mehta who will retire from the company after 46 years in the tire business.

Kershaw joined BKT USA in 2018 and he has strongly contributed to enhancing BKT products’ distribution in the United States by adding a warehouse in Kansas City, Mo., upgrading the U.S. headquarters and expanding BKT’s presence in the construction and mining sectors. Kershaw has more than 31 years of experience in the rubber, composites, tire and track industries, and his goals at BKT are ambitious: strengthening and increasing the company’s awareness and positioning in the American market.

Doug Kershaw

To do so, Kershaw can count on an expert team, starting with Chris Rhoades, current senior product manager-technical services, who has been named assistant vice president and will report directly to Kershaw. Rhoades will lead the team dedicated to medium and large OTR products. Rhoades has been with BKT since 2015, with prior experience as a product manager and 22 years in OTR tire business. He was recently elected to the Tire Industry Association board of directors, an honorary position, to enhance the OTR industry in the United States.  

The solid and strong positioning of BKT in the United States is the result of Mehta’s work as president. He joined BKT in 2014 and since the beginning has created a customer-oriented team which has helped BKT expand its market share in both the agricultural and OTR sectors. Brand building has been a strong focus of BKT’s strategy due to Mehta’s vision, by enhancing BKT’s important partnership with Monster Jam. Mehta will continue collaborating with BKT as consultant and advisor.

“On behalf of everyone at BKT I would like to thank Minoo for his tremendous contribution over the course of his career with us” said Arvind Poddar, chairman and managing director of BKT. “It is thanks to him that we now have strong partnerships with our channel partners and that we could see record growth. It was under Minoo’s guidance that the U.S. team achieved these important results. We wish him all the best and we also congratulate Doug Kershaw and Chris Rhoades. I have no doubt that they will both do an incredible job and that we will continue ‘Growing Together’ as BKT’s motto states.”  

“I am very proud of what the BKT USA team has accomplished and humbled to be part of such a dynamic organization, with the innovative leadership of Arvind Poddar,” said Mehta. “BKT USA is on a strong growth path with exceptional quality product range and has a very bright future ahead. I am truly honored to have contributed and to continue being part of this organization.” 

Source: BKT

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