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Nexen Tire Corporation is a South Korean company that’s been manufacturing Nexen-branded tires for over 80 years. Originally founded in 1942 under the name Heung-A Tire Company, the company made history in 1956 when it was recognized as the first Korean tire manufacturer. But technically speaking, its local rival Hankook Tire is older since it was established in 1941.

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Before the turn of the century, Hueng-A changed its name to Woosung Tire in 1994. Then in 2000, the company rebranded itself as Nexen Tire Corp. The new name was a portmanteau of “next” and “century” to reflect the firm’s eagerness for future growth and technological advancement. In 2005, the company took its first step toward expanding its brand overseas with the establishment of Nexen Tire America. 

At present, Nexen is already one of the top three tire brands in its home country, alongside Hankook and Kumho. Sales data from 2024 showed the trio comprising 88% of the national market share, beating out international giants Michelin, Continental, Pirelli, and Bridgestone. Outside South Korea, Nexen and its neighboring competitors may not be as prominent, but they have already established an international presence through years of expansion and product development.

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Even though Nexen has failed to penetrate the 14 Major Tire Brands of 2025, it’s still considered among the most recognizable tire manufacturers because of its wide range of products for passenger vehicles, SUVs, and light trucks. 

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Nexen’s expansion into North America with Nexen Tire America has allowed it to build a presence in one of the most competitive automotive markets. To increase its visibility and market share in the U.S., it made significant advancements in marketing as well as research and development. However, the latter took a lot of time before it could materialize.

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Nexen entered the U.S. in 2005 and focused on the sale and distribution of its products in North America for over a decade before it could really work on creating and innovating its tire offerings for the region. It was only in 2017 when the tire manufacturer broke ground for its tire technology center in Richfield, Ohio. The $5 million project was completed a year later.

The 34,000-square-foot facility houses Nexen’s offices, research labs, testing machines, and warehouse. It serves as a hub for the company’s tire technology advancements, with the goal of creating more cutting-edge and eco-friendly tire products for consumers and automakers in both North and South America.

On the marketing side of things, Nexen strengthened its foothold in the U.S. by actively partnering with and sponsoring sports teams and organizations to raise brand awareness. It has collaborated with different Major League Baseball (MLB) and National Hockey League (NHL) teams and advertised on National Basketball Association (NBA) games. It has also sponsored Formula Drift, the top drifting event in the U.S.

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Nexen’s partnership with different car brands has made its products the preferred choice for original equipment (OE) tires of many vehicles across the globe. Since 2012, it has produced tires for different automakers, including American brands Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, and Ram. Interestingly, all of the tires are imported from its production lines outside of the U.S. since Nexen still doesn’t have a stateside manufacturing facility.

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The majority of Nexen’s tire supply for the U.S. is from South Korea, where it has two manufacturing facilities: one in Yangsan and another in Changnyeong. The production plant in Changnyeong is considered one of the world’s largest and most advanced tire manufacturing facilities. It produces the bulk of the OE tire supply for partner carmakers.

Nexen also has a production plant in Qingdao, China. It was built in 2007 and opened a year later to help accommodate the increasing global demand for Nexen tires. Its fourth manufacturing facility located in the Czech Republic, which started operating in 2019 and primarily focuses on rolling out tire products for Europe, also produces tires for the global market, presumably including the U.S.

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In 2023, the South Korean brand announced plans for a North American manufacturing facility to reduce its U.S.-based distributors’ reliance on overseas shipments and significantly improve its supply chain efficiency in the region. The $1.3 billion investment is expected to commence its operations in 2029, producing a daily output of 30,000 tire units.