Hanover, May 15, 2026 – Pradeep Karat has been the new Sales Director OTR for the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region since the beginning of May 2026. In this role, Karat is responsible for the strategy and sales of the Specialty Tires division in the Middle East and Africa, reporting to Jeffrey Hughes, Director EMEA. He will work closely with the respective product and marketing teams with the goal of establishing Linglong Tire as a leading specialty tire provider in the market, identifying new strategic partnerships, generating business growth, and opening up new regions.
Karat joins from Hankook Tire Middle East and Africa, where he most recently served as Senior Manager Truck Tires Sales. Over the course of his career, Karat has accumulated more than 30 years of experience in various sales and marketing leadership positions at premium tire manufacturers such as Bridgestone, Goodyear, and Continental. He brings extensive expertise from the industrial, retail, and customer sides and has been highly successful in the competitive markets of the MEA region over the past decades.
“I am very pleased to be part of the Linglong team and to start as Linglong Sales Director for the Middle East and Africa. I will do my utmost to use my experience and expertise to successfully advance Linglong in the MEA region,” said the new Director Specialty Tires MEA at Linglong Tire.
Pradeep Karat holds a master’s degree in marketing and economics and speaks English, Arabic, Hindi, Tamil, and Malayalam, among others. He will be based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Jeff Hughes, Director OTR EMEA: “I have worked with Pradeep in the Middle East in the past and am very pleased that he is now working for Linglong to support us in further growing our off-highway business. He brings extensive knowledge of the region and knows how to find new sales partners and build strong relationships. Pradeep will focus in particular on expanding Linglong’s presence in India and key African markets. He will work closely with Sherif Degheidy, who joined us in February and is already operating very successfully in the market—together, Pradeep and Sherif will be a great, professional team that will successfully develop the Linglong brand in the OTR segment in the MEA region.”
