Registering a trademark in 1911 is to firmly believe in the automotive revolution, even as France still hesitates between horse and engine. This is the bet made by the Clerget Rubber Manufacturing with Kleber, a response to the rush for the road and the appetite for mobility. The 1930s see the company rise at the speed of industry, positioning itself against the largest in Europe, before the war abruptly halts this momentum. The post-war period not only revives the machines: it imposes new ways of manufacturing, thinking about the road, and distributing. The integration into Michelin in 1981 does not dissolve the Kleber identity; it reorients it, strengthens it, but keeps it clearly visible in the French landscape.
A French industrial flagship: what are the origins and the footprint of Kleber in the history of tires?
The roots of Kleber delve into the soil of a changing France, where technology becomes a collective ambition. In 1910, in Colombes, the brand was born under the banner of the Société Française B. F. Goodrich. As early as 1911, the first Kleber tire rolls out of the workshop: a tangible object, designed for the road, which embodies a fierce desire to mark the territory of French innovation. At that time, making a tire means marrying the rigor of industry with the precision of artisanal craftsmanship, while supporting a society that is opening up to mass mobility.
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The war disrupts everything. The factories are hit but not annihilated, the brand absorbs the shock, then chooses to rename itself Kleber-Colombes. Moving its headquarters to avenue Kléber in Paris is more than just a change of address: it is a declaration. It aims to establish the brand in the capital, to assert its belonging to industrial and urban France. This new address soon imposes itself as a symbol, a milestone in the history of the tricolor tire.
To illuminate this path, one only needs to examine the origin of Kleber tires in France: everything, from design to factory output, takes place on a well-defined territory. The workshops in Colombes, followed by extensions in Troyes, Clermont-Ferrand, and Cholet, structure a 100% hexagonal industrial network. Kleber thus establishes itself as a name that withstands the test of time, through crises, without ever renouncing its roots. Behind the Kleber story is also that of an industrial France that has managed to maintain its brands, even in the face of the storm.
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The manufacturing of Kleber tires: between traditional know-how and technological innovations
A Kleber tire is primarily a legacy, but never static. The brand relies on know-how passed down from generation to generation, and on factories that embody this longevity: Colombes, Troyes, Clermont-Ferrand, Cholet. In Zalău, Romania, modernity makes its entrance, particularly for the production of the Dynaxer UHP models, proving that European openness can align with high standards.
It is impossible to talk about Kleber without mentioning its technical breakthroughs. 1951: the tubeless tire comes out of the presses, bringing with it a new way of conceiving safety and performance. Other innovations will follow, from the Flexible Cord Tire to the V10, along with iconic collaborations (Concorde, Renault Twingo). At each stage, the selection of materials, quality controls, and manufacturing processes are refined, adapted to each type of tire.
Some emblematic examples illustrate the diversity of the Kleber range:
- Dynaxer HP3, HP4, UHP: these summer and ultra-high-performance tires meet the needs for safety and longevity.
- Quadraxer 3: the choice of versatility, usable all year round.
- Krisalp HP3: designed for winter, it stands out for its grip on cold surfaces.
- Transalp: dedicated to utility vehicles, it combines robustness and wear resistance.
Kleber production is thus the combination of in-house expertise, cutting-edge French sites, and a constant appetite for innovation. Between attachment to history and adaptation to the current market, each tire that comes off the production line carries this dual signature.
Economic and social challenges: understanding the repercussions of the industrial crisis on the sector and food security
The storm shaking the tire sector goes far beyond production figures. It affects the balance of employment, threatens historic workshops, and weakens an entire ecosystem: French factories, supply chains, and distribution networks. Kleber primarily addresses those seeking the right balance between quality and price, but the pressure on margins forces heavy decisions that impact employment and regions.
Industrial jobs find themselves on the front lines of these transformations. Behind each restructuring, an entire region absorbs the shock: subcontractors, local SMEs, businesses that thrive on the rhythm of the factories. Public authorities and unions are trying to limit the damage, through negotiations and retraining measures, but the question remains: how to preserve skills and keep factories alive? Reclassification, training, maintaining know-how: these issues are now at the center of the debates.
Food security, often absent from discussions about the tire industry, suddenly comes into play. Kleber tires equip tractors and trucks, essential links in the agricultural and transport chain. A supply disruption or a quality defect, and the logistics of harvests, markets, and supermarkets falter. When an industrial sector wobbles, it is also the stability of European food supply that is left exposed, from the field to the plate.
Staying afloat, continuing to manufacture, is the whole challenge: for workers, for regions, but also for all those who depend, often unknowingly, on the reliability of a simple tire.