Magazine for the professional tire industry
Issue link: https://mtd.epubxp.com/i/567620
MTD September 2015 Tire Dealer of the Year company operates. No doubt it plays into their success. People in this company know the Bentons care about them." Store managers talk about how any call from Benton involves questions not just about business, but about their families, and their employees' families. When he learns of employees who hit a rough patch, he helps them anonymously. He'll take a couple hundred dollar bills from his wallet, hand the cash to the manager and tell them to pass it to the employee later in the day. He doesn't want the worker to know the help is coming from him. Benton's goodwill overfows and has become contagious at Black's Tire. A year ago Oliver Castrejon's house was destroyed in a fire. W hen Benton arrived at the scene to check on Castrejon and his two young children, the man was burying his dog. Benton asked Castrejon to take a seat in his pickup truck. He said he had no idea what he was going to do. Benton told him to go to Myrtle Beach and get a hotel for the night, and they'd fgure something out in the morning. Tat's when the BTS family sprang into action. Another employee, Stuart Clark, had just moved into a new house and was planning to rent his former home. He opened it up to Castrejon instead. A local furniture store and others in the community helped to furnish the home, and the BTS family rummaged through their own closets to provide the essentials, including furnishings, Personality snapshot of our 2015 Tire Dealer of the Year Full name: Ricky James Benton Age: 60. Family: Wife Dianne; sons Rick (and wife Angie), Ryan (and wife Carter), and Jeremy (and w i fe Luc y); and eight grandchildren: Trey, Cody, Cole, Chase, Reilly, Carrington, Betsy and Harrison. My hobbies include: racing and watching baseball games. I am most proud of: my sons and the BTS family. My favorite childhood memory: going to auto races with my uncle. My biggest regret: I don't have any. My biggest success: being able to provide a college education for my sons, and marrying a great woman. My favorite books: I don't read much, but I would have to say the Bible and a children's book that is about staying positive and facing challenges called "Te Energy Bus" by Jon Gordon. My favorite athlete: Michael Jordan. My favorite movies: "Te Notebook" and "Forrest Gump." What famous actor would best portray you in a flm? Rodney Dangerfeld. My favorite motivational message: TEAM: Together Everyone Achieves More. We preach it daily in our business. My favorite food: Italian. My favorite politician: Ronald Reagan. A re you a mor n ing person or a night owl? Definitely a morning person. If I could change one thing about myself: I would learn to listen more. My goal in life is: to watch my grandchil- dren grow up and suc- ceed, and to help keep the business growing. A perfect evening for me is: grilling in the backyard and visit- ing with friends and family. Te smartest thing I 'v e e v e r d o n e : marry my wife. Best advice my par- ents gave me: Always look for the good in everyone. My advice for my children: Live a life you can be proud of. Take care of your family and always help others. Don't ever forget where you came from. My advice for a tire dealer who is just starting out: Customer service always comes first; but if you take care of your team, they will take care of the customer. Te best part of the tire industry is: The people! Being able to meet and work with lots of great people over the years. I've made a lot of good friends in the tire industry. Ricky and Dianne Benton own Black's Tire. Their three sons have grown up in the business and play integral roles in it. From left to right in the back are Ryan, Rick and Jeremy. n . : g ? g e I n o l - - p g . r e - d g : R i c k y a n d D i a n n e B e n t o n o w n B l a c k ' s T i r e . T h e i r t h r e e s o n s h a v e o w i h b u i n e s d l i t g l l i i t F 36