Big O Tires Shares Growth, Honors Members at Annual Convention

More than 700 Big O Tires franchise owners, managers, corporate associates and suppliers recently gathered in Phoenix for the company’s annual convention.

The meeting’s “Get Your Motor Running” theme was evident throughout franchisee panel discussions, executive presentations, the keynote speaker and trade show. Another common theme centered on exceeding goals – something Big O delivered: compared to 2015, retail sales (+5.5%), same store service sales (+6%), car count (+3.1%) and tire units sold (+3.3%) all increased. Big O Tires welcomed 14 new stores and six new franchisees over the last year.

This year’s keynote speaker, Eric Chester, author and founder of The Center for Work Ethic Development, inspired attendees to revisit their foundations and focus on what matters most in their individual workplace: culture, work ethic and engagement – all of which point back to people.

More than $72,000 was raised for the Big O Tires Scholarship Fund from event participants at the event.

In the annual awards ceremony, several Big O franchisees were recognized:

Standing “O” Awards: Mick Alley, store owner in Boise, ID; Rusty Coats, vice president of operations of MFA Oil, owners of 15 Big O Tires stores in Missouri and Arkansas; Kevin Shuttic, vice president of Sharp Advertising in Phoenix; Kristen Wagner, paralegal at TBC Corp.; Troy Sturdivant, merchandising analyst at TBC; and David Lynch, franchise business consultant for the Northern California region.

Platinum Performer Award: Tom Huls of Yucca Valley, Calif., for his commitment to exceeding expectations in everything that he does and his recognition as a Platinum Performer by Tire Review Magazine.

Hall of Fame Inductee: Bryan Edwards, who began his career at a Big O Tires store in Orem, Utah, in the 1970s and who, for the last 15 years, has owned the Redding, Calif., store with his brothers, Jay and Ken. “Throughout the past few years, the Big O Tires team has done a great job navigating the industry and staying ahead of trends in many areas of the business – marketing, product, operations – and it has positively impacted where we are today,” said Kevin Kormondy, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Big O Tires. “We are ahead of the curve with exceptional numbers to support our industry position, and we will continue our hard work in partnership with franchisees to keep us moving in the right direction.”

The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has named Ryan Waldron as president of the company's Americas business unit, reporting to Chief Executive Officer and President Mark Stewart. He succeeds Steven R. McClellan, who retired on April 1.

"At Goodyear, our customers are at the center of everything we do, and in Ryan Waldron, we have a customer-centric, execution-focused business leader with a deep understanding of both the marketplace and all aspects of our business, as well as a proven track record of delivering results," Stewart said. "I am thrilled to announce him as president of Goodyear's Americas business and have enormous confidence that under his leadership, both the company and our customers will reach even greater levels of success."