Magazine for the professional tire industry
Issue link: https://mtd.epubxp.com/i/567620
MTD September 2015 Tire Dealer of the Year expectations. Black's Tire has grown from a single store in 1981 when Benton joined the company to eight stores in 1996 when he purchased the business to the current 36 retail/commercial outlets in North and South Carolina. In addition to those retail stores, which sell everything from wheelbarrow tires to of-the-road tires, he's also added tire wholesaling, retreading, equipment distribution and racing to the business portfolio. Tis jack-of-all-trades is Modern Tire Dealer's 2015 Tire Dealer of the Year. A hands-on, accessible leader W hile operating his hometown service station, Benton bought oil from W. Crowell Black, the founder and namesake of Black's Tire 14 miles to the east in Whiteville, N.C. Eventually Black and his son, W. Donald "Buddy" Black, lured Benton to work for them in the tire business. "When I was at the station, Mr. Black had a bunch of stations, but I did beter than everyone else. I paid my bills on time," Benton says. "Te thing about it is you don't have to be the biggest. You've just got to try to be the best. And the best is completely by service." Benton believes service and his work ethic set him apart in 1981 when he went to work at the original Black's Tire store. He believes those traits are what count in business today. Dianne Benton says her husband "always had that desire to succeed and work really hard to make sure it does succeed." Benton is not a typical executive. He wears blue jeans and a polo shirt to work most days and rarely spends time siting behind a desk. He prefers to be in the shop, or in his pickup on the road to visit a shop. Even though his smartphone is never out of reach — except when he goes to church — he still prefers to write notes on his hand. He doesn't like to type. And employees say if he rolls up to a store on a busy day, he'll have his hands dirty in a mater of minutes. Jonathan Ransom manages one of the company's busiest stores on the south side of Fayeteville, N.C. Te Gillespie Street location ofers both passenger and commercial service, with about 75% of the business being commercial work. With so many big rigs on site, truck tire changes ofen are done on an outdoor pad. During a busy day one of the store's new hires noticed a man he didn't recognize changing a truck tire on that outdoor pad. He told Ransom, who peeked outside the door. "Tat's This original Black's Tire store remains in operation in Whiteville, N.C. The company's founder, W. Crowell Black, is pictured at the far right in this photo from the 1950s. Ricky Benton has retired the rufed shirt, bow tie and jacket of his teen years, and prefers jeans and a polo shirt. T h i s o r i g i n a l B l a c k ' s T i r e s t o r e r e m a i n s i n o p e r a t i o n i n R i c k y B e n t o n h a s r e t i r e d t h e r u f e d s h i r t , b o w t i e a n d j a c k e t 24