North Gateway Tire invited dealers, suppliers and customers to its northeast Ohio warehouse Sept. 7 to celebrate a milestone 40 years in business.
The all-day celebration included a vendor showcase, where companies including Kenda, Coats, Nexen, Yokohama, Myers Tire Supply, Firestone and more gave away prizes and discounts to dealers who stopped by.
According to Jeff Perrotta, who works in wholesale tire sales for the company, the key to achieving 40 years of success comes from regularly showing customers appreciation as well as hiring the right people and staying organized.
“This place runs like a Swiss watch,” Perrotta said, referring to North Gateway’s 300,000-square-foot warehouse in Seville, Ohio, built in 2007. “Five or six months ago, we inventoried the warehouse, and this is about $13.5 million in inventory, and we inventoried it in 14 hours, and the total discrepancy was we found $3,000 in tires. That doesn’t happen.”
North Gateway vice president of sales Mike Hill thanked the almost 500 attendees with giveaways, live music and a clam bake dinner.
“Back in 1979, Nov. 1, my father, Darrell Hill, Bob Dunlop and Tom Batey started North Gateway Tire,” Hill said. “You the dealers, the vendors, you have done a phenomenal job. We appreciate all the money, all the support you have given us for this event.”
