Viking (tire brand)
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| founding | 1931 |
| Seat | Former Askim (Norway), today Hanover |
| Number of employees | Former 3,500 |
| Branch | Tire industry |
| Website | www.viking-tyres.com |
Viking is a former Norwegian tire manufacturer and a logo and word mark of Continental AG . Summer and winter tires for cars and vans are produced under the brand name . Viking is part of Continental's multi-brand strategy .
history
Viking was founded in Askim in 1931 as Viking Askim A / S and was the first Norwegian company to develop and manufacture rubber products (including shoes and tires).
In 1970 the management decided to switch production to car tires. In the early 1980s, the Viking brand was introduced in Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, Italy, Switzerland and the USA. After Viking was 100% taken over by the Swedish tire manufacturer Gislaved in 1985, Nivis Tire AB emerged from this merger in 1987.
At the beginning of the 1990s, Continental AG bought the Nivis company with the Viking and Gislaved brands. Then in 1991 the Viking factory in Norway was closed. Subsequently, Viking's products were manufactured in the Gislaved factories for a number of years until they were also closed.
Norway was the first market to establish Continental’s multi-brand strategy. The previous importers in Norway were paid off and the Continental, Uniroyal and Semperit brands were launched. The same change happened in Sweden some time later.
Today Viking tires are manufactured at the European locations where Continental tires are also manufactured. The brand has been fully integrated into the Continental Corporation.
Brand name
The brand name refers to the Vikings who were also considered good traders, explorers and skilled craftsmen. The brand name Viking is intended to underline the product characteristics of the tires in an associative way.
The logo shows the Viking lettering next to the figurative mark “Olav the Viking”, which also appears in some places on a Viking tire and is intended to give the brand a recognition value. The design of the Viking-V reflects the Norwegian national colors and is intended to emphasize the European quality.
Product range
Several summer passenger car tires are traded under the brand name Viking , including the Viking ProTech HP (since 2014) and the Viking CityTech II (since 2012). The range also includes the Viking SnowTech II winter car tire (since 2013), the Viking TransTech II summer van tire (since 2012) and the Viking SnowTech Van winter tire.