In 1955, Robert Sullivan opened a single retail shop, Bob Sullivan and Sons, on a dead-end street in Rockland, Mass.
60 years later, Norwell, Mass.-based Sullivan Tire and Auto Service employs more than 1,300 people – including nearly a dozen members of the Sullivan family – and has sold nearly 40 million tires, according to the company.
The dealership has expanded its reach to five New England states, has more than 200,000 retail customers, 67 retail tire and auto repair stores, 15 commercial truck tire centers, four distribution centers and three Bandag retreading plants.
Among the things that haven’t changed, the dealership said, it the philosophy on which it was founded – treating every customer and fellow employee as you would a member of your own family.