Johnny G & Friends

Sullivan Tire is a name synonymous with the tire business. Yet when Bob Sullivan decided to take a risk and start the business in 1955, he was working out of a little red garage in Rockland, Massachusetts, that he rented for $150 per month. At that time, the Sullivan family had eight kids—eight mouths to feed—yet Bob was determined to go in business for himself and pursue the American dream. Fast...

Growing up, Beth Barron watched her father, Charley Gowland and his business partner, Billy Parker, open the first Chabill’s Tire & Auto Service in Morgan City, Louisiana. in the late ‘60s. For Charley, he looked at it as a huge business opportunity, which has blossomed into 19 stores over the past 55 years. Yet if you asked a college-aged Beth at the time if she’d take over the business one d...

What every independent tire dealer wants is for their customers to drive away happy—satisfied with their vehicle, the quality of repair, and the staff that made it all happen. Living that out is another story, but at Chapel Hill Tire, owner Marc Pons has created a foundation for the business’s slogan, “Drive Happy,” which is plastered through its 10 stores in North Carolina’s Research Triangle. To...

Today’s tire business is rapidly changing: you’re seeing new vehicle technology in your bays daily, and our digital world has changed the way you do business. Yet as you’ll find in this episode of Johnny g & Friends, presented by Firestone, running a successful tire business starts with the basics. What are those and how do you get there? This year’s guests on Johnny g & Friends have some advice....

Behind the 17 locations of St. Lucie Battery & Tire is a family of immigrants who moved to southeast Florida in the 1940s. Initially, the Miller family started a poultry and egg business in Fort Pierce, yet one of the oldest boys, Joey, saw a need for batteries in the area. So, after he delivered eggs and poultry to the locals, he’d pick up old batteries from service stations, clean them up and re...

When you walk through the doors of Suburban Tire & Auto Centers in Glendale, Heights, Illinois, you’re walking into one of the cleanest and most organized tire dealerships on the east coast. “I could eat off the floors,” says Johnny g about the tire store this month’s guest has made into a superstore in the suburbs of Chicago. In this episode of Johnny g & Friends, presented by Firestone, meet Gor...

Jamie Ward is a true tire guy. He learned automotive service work at an early age and had the skills equivalent to an ASE Master Tech by age 15. As he grew in the business, his passion and energy for the industry has catapulted him to president and CEO of TireDiscounters where he has been an instrumental part of growing the business from eight stores to the over 175 locations the dealership has to...

Even when Jarid Lundeen worked in the restaurant and banking industries, one thing about the customer experience always stood out to him: Consistency. Early on, he learned consistency creates success, which is what he looks to instill in his four Tires Plus locations in Minott, North Dakota. But how do you do that? Jarid tells Johnny g in this latest episode of Johnny g & Friends, presented by Fir...

With opportunities for growth, many businesses add to their bottom line, but it also becomes more complex and complicated to keep things running. With so many balls in the air, it gets harder to stick to your mission– why you even started in the first place–as well as your vision for the business and the values you want the business to carry out on a daily basis. It’s truly a juggling act, but one...

Wendel Burt, co-founder of Burt Brothers Tire & Service, attributes his success in the tire industry to two words: Hard work. It’s that simple yet also challenging and complicated when you’re the one that’s the owner, service advisor, trainer, technican, HR department and… should we go on? We know other tire dealers out there get the grit it takes to start your own tire business. So, when Wendel B...

Expanding from one store to two is hard enough, but imagine expanding from one to 19 stores in the span of 10 years. If you think that sounds like a daunting task, you’re not alone, but that’s the feat Aaron Telle, owner of Telle Tire & Auto Centers based in St. Louis, Missouri, accomplished after taking over his family’s business in 2009. The fourth-generation owner of Telle Tire & Auto Centers,...

For years, Virginia Tire & Auto has been among the best tire dealers in North America. The dealership, now spanning 18 stores, was named Tire Review’s Top Shop Winner in 2011, and since then, has garnered local and national accolades. Today in its second generation of ownership, Virginia Tire is redefining what it means to be a tire dealer in the 21st century with an open mind toward technology, s...

Any industry, sport or line of work has “the greats” — those people that others in the industry know for the work they do, the business they’re building and the legacy that they’re creating. They’re known for their steadfast leadership, problem-solving abilities, and most importantly, their unwavering passion for the industry and serving their communities. In season 1 of Johnny g & Friends, presen...

Teamwork is key to running a successful business, and no one knows that better than Craig Tate. A second-generation tire dealer with a passion for the tire business, Craig was a college football player who took over his father’s tire dealership with his brother, Chuck, in 2000. The two grew the business to seven locations, running the multi-store business like they were operating a football team....

John Ziegler Jr. has rubber running through his veins. The third generation of a 102-year-old tire business, John Jr. grew up busting tires at his family’s Ziegler Tire retail stores in Canton, Ohio. After graduating college, he worked for a short time at a Firestone store, yet the family business, which claims to be one of the first and oldest Firestone dealers, called him back. A jack of all tra...

When you train under “The Captain,” you’re bound to be a captain of the industry in your own right. And John Boyle definitely is. Just ask Johnny g. Like many dealers out there, Boyle grew up in the tire business. He began working as a teenager for his father, Jerry “Captain” Boyle, who founded Englewood Tire Distributors with a partner in 1945. Boyle eventually worked his way up through the ranks...

When you take a look around at the tire service equipment in your shop, you may see the name of the company that Johnny g’s next guest represents. The one that he credits for imprinting the tire industry in his heart. That company is Hunter Engineering, and the guest that’s been part of its team for over 25 years is none other than John Zentz, the company’s senior vice president of global sales. J...

A lot of luck, forming long-lasting relationships and a push to always remain relevant has led to S&S Tire’s enduring success over the years. Yet, you can’t have a successful three-generation business without having a solid foundation. For this Kentucky-based tire distributor, that foundation started with Paul Swentzel, co-founder of S&S Tire who has also helped other dealers and distributors in t...

In this episode of Johnny g & Friends, get to know the “Michael Jordan of the Tire Industry.” No he’s not 6-foot-6 with six playoff rings, but he is the largest car dealer in the state of Florida. That man is Larry Morgan, chairman of Morgan Family Ventures, a high-growth group of companies spanning multiple industries. Why is he the “Michael Jordan of the Tire Industry?” Well, because he’s the GO...

Mario Andretti is a racing icon. He’s won the Daytona 500, the Indy 500 and a Formula One World Championship—a feat no other racecar driver has achieved. He’s taken the checkered flag 111 times during his career, and today, he shares his stories and reflections from his more than 50-year career in the inaugural episode of Johnny g & Friends. John Gamauf (aka Johnny g) first met Mario in the mid-90...