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  • September 2024

    • September 2024

    Photo: Gills Point S
    Gills Point S has quadrupled its store count since 2020. Owner Eric Gill says he used COVID-19 relief funding to reinvest in the business, and more recently, employees and acquired dealers have provided additional equity to fuel ongoing growth.
    Retail

    Growing and Investing in Gills Point S

    Joy Kopcha
    Oct. 2, 2024
    Four years ago, Gills Point S Tire & Auto was a family-owned business based in Oregon, with 17 stores. Since then, the company has quadrupled in size.
    MTD
    Longtime, loyal clients who have done business with you before might be willing to overlook a few customer service blunders.
    Retail

    Editorial: How to Lose a Casual Customer

    Mike Manges
    Oct. 1, 2024
    The old phrase, "You only get one chance to make a first impression," has never been more applicable. That's especially true when dealing with first-time customers.
    Photo: Wonderland Tire Co.
    'Employees recognize it when you do things for them that you don't have to do,' says Jon Langerak, CEO and president of Wonderland Tire Co. (pictured center). Langerak was MTD's Tire Dealer of the Year Award recipient in 2023.
    Retail

    Management Tips From Past Tire Dealer of the Year Award Winners

    Mike Manges
    Sept. 24, 2024
    Some of the country's biggest, most celebrated independent tire dealers have developed strategies and philosophies to guide them in managing talent.
    Hankook Tire America Corp.
    'Once you know who is in and who is out at your dealership, make your plans to keep all your EV customers coming back,' says Van Batenburg.
    Retail

    Get Your Employees On-Board With EV Service

    Craig Van Batenburg
    Sept. 24, 2024
    Once you know who is in and who is out at your dealership, make your plans to keep all your EV customers coming back.
    Photo: MTD
    Technicians at Chabill's Tire & Auto Service must have a second person observe and sign off on the torquing of every wheel. Manager Mike Cohen in Houma says the policy, which is simply known as 'double torque,' has been around since the company had half as many stores as it does now.
    Retail

    A Non-Negotiable Wheel-Off Policy

    Joy Kopcha
    Sept. 20, 2024
    The consequences for Chabill's Tire & Auto Service employees who don't follow the wheel-off policy are dire and without recourse.

    More content from September 2024

    Photo: MTD
    Beth Barron and her husband Carey Barron have worked side-by-side for more than 25 years at Chabill's Tire & Auto Service. And in 2024, their children all have roles in the company their grandfather co-founded in 1968.
    Retail

    The Dynamics of a Woman Taking Charge of a Tire Dealership

    Joy Kopcha
    Sept. 19, 2024
    For all but five years of her 30-plus year career at Chabill's Tire & Auto Service, CEO Beth Barron has worked alongside her husband Carey.
    Photo: Jared Navarre | Romph Pou Agency
    Adding a Chabill's Tire-branded credit card from CFNA, the bank owned by Bridgestone Americas Inc., has 'been an absolute difference maker for us,' says Beth Barron.
    Retail

    Customer Credit Is a Gamechanger for Chabill's Tire & Auto Service

    Joy Kopcha
    Sept. 19, 2024
    “I never really bought into financing because I didn’t want to have a Goodyear card or a Firestone card. If we’re gonna have a credit card I want it to be a Chabill’s Tire card...
    Photo: MTD
    Bradley Schefferstein moved into Carey and Beth Barron's house as a teenager after his father died. They've remained his rock, and today's he's a successful store manager for Chabill's Tire & Auto Service who will eventually help lead the company into the future.
    Retail

    A Teen Joins the Family, and the Tire Business

    Joy Kopcha
    Sept. 18, 2024
    Bradley Schefferstein moved into Carey and Beth Barron's house as a teenager after his father died. They've remained his rock, and today's he's a successful store manager for ...
    Photo: MTD
    Manager Russ Disalvo talks through a brake service job with Anastasia Dukes, a general service technician at Chabill's Tire & Auto Service. The tire dealership has noticed a trend that its young managers experience less turnover among their youngest staff members.
    Retail

    How Chabill's Tire Retains Young Workers

    Joy Kopcha
    Sept. 18, 2024
    Charlie Barron noted a trend in the Chabill's Tire & Auto Service workforce. In stores run by younger managers, there's less turnover amongst young staff members — even in entry...
    Photo: MTD
    Beth Barron says, 'I love 20 groups because it allows me to measure myself against the best of the best in the industry.'
    Retail

    MTD's Tire Dealer of the Year Is a 20 Group Evangelist

    Joy Kopcha
    Sept. 17, 2024
    Beth Barron believes strongly in the relationships and the metrics that come from being a member of this peer group.
    Photo: Jared Navarre | Romph Pou Agency
    Beth Barron is the third woman honored as a Tire Dealer of the Year — two other women were named alongside their husbands. Barron is the first sole female tire dealership executive to win the award. She's pictured here with manager Heather Guarisco, who leads the company's three-time store of the year.
    Retail

    Beth Barron Is No Longer a Novelty

    Joy Kopcha
    Sept. 17, 2024
    Beth Barron can clearly recall attending a tire industry event while in her 30s and being the only woman in the room. An older gentleman seated next to her asked if she was a ...
    Image: Focus Investment Banking
    We first assemble a target list of strategic buyers and private equity groups that have an interest in the type of business we are representing.
    Retail

    Best Practices With Letters of Intent

    Michael McGregor
    Sept. 16, 2024
    Providing detail helps ensure that both parties have a mutual understanding of the most important deal terms before investing significant time and resources in the deal.
    Photo: Jared Navarre | Romph Pou Agency
    Beth Barron, CEO of Chabill's Tire & Auto Service, says she's an open book. 'I think some people find that strange. I'm very open with my vendors — what I'm doing and what they can expect and why I'm not buying from them, or why I am buying from them.'
    Retail

    A Passionate Cheerleader: Beth Barron Is MTD's 2024 Tire Dealer of the Year

    Joy Kopcha
    Sept. 16, 2024
    Beth Barron is steering her family's tire dealership, Chabill's Tire & Auto Service, as its CEO. She's a rare female in that role, and she's also Modern Tire Dealer's 2024 Tire...
    Photo: Jared Navarre | Romph Pou Agency
    The Barron family, from left: Patrick Barron, Amanda Michel, Carey and Beth Barron, and Charlie Barron.
    Retail

    Get to Know Beth Barron

    Joy Kopcha
    Sept. 16, 2024
    Dive in and get acquainted with MTD's 2024 Tire Dealer of the Year, Beth Barron.
    Photo: Burt Brothers Tire & Service Inc.
    Net profit shows how well you fix cars. Cash flow shows how well you manage money.
    Retail

    How to Improve Your Net Profit and Cash Flow

    Dennis McCarron
    Sept. 9, 2024
    If you are making a net profit that makes you smile, that’s fantastic. That’s quite an accomplishment in a very tough, competitive and ever-changing market. But net profit doesn...
    Photo: MTD
    Tom (right) and TJ White of Akron, Ohio-based Tire Source turned their new corporate office space into an extra warehouse for restocking their six retail stores.
    Retail

    Tire Source Opens D/C, Corporate Office

    Madison Gehring
    Aug. 30, 2024
    Tom White and TJ White of Tire Source had been looking for a new warehouse location for some time when a unique opportunity fell into their lap.
    Pat Durham
    'About a quarter of the tire dealers who responded to our survey said there had been some price concessions from tire manufacturers,' says Healy.
    Retail

    Tire Sellout Bucks Driving Trends

    John Healy
    Aug. 27, 2024
    Miles driven often correlates with tire volume data, but that's not an absolute rule.
    Pat Durham
    'As the owner of an independent tire dealership, you are today in a much better position to succeed than most any other time in recent memory,' says O'Connor.
    Retail

    How to Scale Your Business

    Randy O'Connor
    Aug. 27, 2024
    When you scale your business, you have to place and train new leaders to fill the roles you should leave behind.
    Burt Brothers Tire & Service Inc.
    “So far, Burt Brothers has grown by picking up one or two stores at a time,” says Brian Maciak, the dealership’s CEO. “We no longer have to do that. We know how to integrate bigger deals, so we’re welcoming those.”
    Retail

    What’s Next for Burt Brothers Tire & Service?

    Mike Manges
    Aug. 23, 2024
    In this MTD exclusive, Brian Maciak, CEO of Burt Brothers Tire & Service Inc., discusses why the North Salt Lake, Utah-dealership is primed for expansion.
    MTD
    Mavis Tire Express Services Corp.’s acquisition of Tire Kingdom and NTB Tire & Service stores from TBC Corp., which gave the Millwood, N.Y.-based Mavis more than 2,000 locations, also marked TBC’s exit from company-owned tire retail.
    Retail

    Mavis Discusses NTB/Tire Kingdom Integration

    Mike Manges
    Aug. 20, 2024
    David Sorbaro, co-CEO of Mavis Tire Express Services Corp., provides an exclusive update on Mavis’ integration of its NTB Tire & Service Centers and Tire Kingdom stores.
    MTD
    Available in the United States in 40 sizes, the new Blackhawk Ridgecrawler R/T has been designed to deliver optimal off-road traction, as well as a quiet, comfortable ride.
    Retail

    New Blackhawk Tire Targets R/T Segment

    Mike Manges
    Aug. 15, 2024
    Sailun Tire Americas is looking to pick up more share in the rapidly growing rugged-terrain segment with the new Blackhawk Ridgecrawler R/T.
    Photo: Hugh Boeset
    Retail

    Hugh Boeset Finds Extra Profit With ADAS

    Mike Manges
    Aug. 12, 2024
    Tire dealers who aren’t offering ADAS calibrations are missing out on extra revenue, says Hugh Boeset, who provides ADAS service at two of his stores.
    MTD
    Suppliers

    Prinx Chengshan Marks Five Years With New Products

    Joy Kopcha
    July 30, 2024
    Prinx Chengshan Tire North America Inc. is celebrating its first five years of growth and also paving a path for continued expansion.