The Winston Tire Company was an American tire manufacturer and automotive service chain based in

Burbank, California Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank has a population of 107,337. The city was named after David Burbank, w ...

., and was founded by Sam Winston and Ray Oliver. The company was in business from 1962 to 2002 when it was acquired by the

Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company is an American multinational tire manufacturing company founded in 1898 by Frank Seiberling and based in Akron, Ohio. Goodyear manufactures tires for automobiles, commercial trucks, light trucks, motorcycles, S ...

History

Sam Winston began selling tires as a teenager after his father's death when his mother married Ray Oliver. Oliver teamed up with Sam to sell tires wholesale in 1962. Two years later, the two men opened their first retail store in Glendale as a Delta Tires dealer. Sam would earn a Bachelor's degree in Economics at the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...

in 1964. The company's early growth got off to a slow start, with only four more additional stores opened in its first four years, However, the next two decades saw rapid expansion and further growth. In 1971, Sam would introduce his own private-label tire line, Winston, and in 1976, he began adding services such as brake and wheel alignment repairs.

Sam's involvement in commercials

For many years, beginning in the 1980s, Winston began starring as a pitchman in a series of television and radio commercials for the company. Jean Craig, a principal of Kresser Craig Inc., which was Winston Tire's advertising agency beginning in 1982, said that Winston didn't particularly like being the spokesman for Winston Tire, but he did it because of his reputation as a recognized personality in the business who attracted enormous attention to consumers and kept their awareness high. Winston's competitors claimed that the ads have been a factor in the growth of Winston Tire.

Lawsuit, financial problems, and Sam's death

Winston Tire's reputation was hit hard by a 1993 state investigation, which found that some of Winston's stores made unnecessary car repairs. The company's sales were hurt after being investigated by undercover agents from the Department of Consumer Affairs who took the cars in top condition to various Winston stores and said they were overcharged over $125 for unnecessary sales of parts and service. In 1993, Winston Tire agreed to pay $1.4 million to settle the case out of court, which included reimbursing $450,000 to 20,000 customers. Despite the settlement, the company did not admit any wrongdoing, and as a result, the company set up various consumer protection programs as a safeguard. In its 1994 fiscal year, Winston Tire posted a loss of $647,000 on $134.9 million in sales, compared to a $1.2-million loss on $147.7 million in sales in 1993, according to Dun & Bradstreet. Despite all this, Winston Tire remained a profitable company, according to Tom Bonburg, who at the time was Winston Tire's chief executive. The company however, suffered a major blow on September 26, 1995, when Sam was killed in an automobile accident in

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

after being ejected from a 1995

Jeep Wrangler The Jeep Wrangler is a series of compact and mid-size four-wheel drive off-road SUVs manufactured by Jeep since 1986 and is currently in its fourth generation. The Wrangler JL, the most recent generation, was revealed in late 2017 and is produ ...

that went out of control with his wife Demetra at the wheel. At the time of his death, the company had 172 stores throughout California and Arizona.

Ownership changes, bankruptcy, and acquisition by Goodyear

In May 1997, Winston Tire was acquired by the Heafner Tire Company (now

American Tire Distributors American Tire Distributors (ATD) is an American distributor and retailer of automotive parts and supplies, including tires and wheels. The company has locations across the United States and Canada. History J.H. Heafner Co. was founded in Linco ...

). Four years later, on May 15, 2001, Heafner sold the chain to Performance Management, Inc. of

Lafayette, Louisiana Lafayette (, ) is a city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and the most populous city and parish seat of Lafayette Parish, located along the Vermilion River. It is Louisiana's fourth largest incorporated municipality by population and the 234th- ...

. On January 19, 2002, Winston Tire filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. On October 28, 2002,

, the longtime supplier to the Winston Tire chain, acquired the company's assets and converted 44 of the chain's 97 locations into Just Tires outlets and sold the rest to existing independent Goodyear dealers and other third parties. The deal eventually put an end to the company after 40 years in business.

References

{{Reflist Tire manufacturers of the United States American companies established in 1962 Automotive companies established in 1962 Retail companies established in 1962 Retail companies disestablished in 2002 Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2002 Automotive part retailers of the United States Automotive repair shops of the United States Defunct manufacturing companies based in Greater Los Angeles 1962 establishments in California 2002 disestablishments in California