1. business and industrial

SEPTEMBER 2003 • VOL . 84, NO. 9 • TEN DOLLARS • A BOBIT PUBLICATION
• How to choose a retirement
plan that works for everyone
• To sipe or not to sipe?
Dealers say yes,
tiremakers say no
MODERN TIRE DEALER
THE INDUSTRY’S LEADING PUBLICATION
Flying high
John Marshall,
Dealer of the Year
www.mtdealer.com
The sky’s the limit
for John Marshall
and Grismer Tire
MTD’s Tire Dealer of the Year
builds on the company’s heritage
and the loyal following
of his employees
18
www.mtdealer.com
By Mike Manges
“Be interested in the things the boss is
interested in. And the customer is boss!”
T
his statement, imparted by Harvey Firestone to former Grismer Tire Co. owner Charles “Charlie” Marshall Sr. more than 70 years ago, has long been the
cornerstone of the Dayton, Ohio-based dealership’s business
philosophy. And it’s the foundation of current Grismer Tire
President and 2003 Modern Tire Dealer Dealer of the Year
John Marshall’s success. To Marshall, customer service is
more than a business school buzzword — it’s
dogma, an absolute conviction that directs every move Grismer Tire
makes as an organization.
At the master’s feet
Grismer
Tire’s his- tory as one of the Midwest’s most prosperous and
well-respected independent tire dealerships dates back to
1932, when Charlie Marshall bought the single-location dealership, which had been started earlier that year by local businessman Adam Grismer.
Charlie, a Cincinnati, Ohio, native, had been running a
Firestone company-owned retail store in Marion, Ind., after a
stint as an insecticide salesman. “Dad went to a banker in
Marion and sold the banker on lending him money to buy the
business — during the depth of the Great Depression! My father did not have any assets, but was regarded as an honest
and fair merchant,” says John. “One of the things that impressed the bank wasn’t just the fact that my father had a
good reputation, but also that his hands were dirty. He was
more than just a store manager; he was willing to do whatever it took.”
Charlie soon began selling new tires out of the dealership’s
storefront location in downtown Dayton (prior to that, it had
been a retread operation). Because space and resources were
limited, employees dismounted tires on the curb and sent
them up to the building’s top floor, where they were changed.
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MTD SEPTEMBER 2003
19
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John and his older brother, Charles
II (“Rusty”), were exposed to the tire
business at an early age. “When we
were kids, dad wasn’t big on TV and
really didn’t like us to watch it. He
would come home and sit in his den,
and always had a legal-size yellow pad
to figure calculations. And he’d talk to
us about business and business philosophy.” Their mother, Gertrude Bucher,
was a well-respected attorney.
John worked at Grismer Tire during
high school, “cleaning the floors, cleaning the restrooms, anything I could do
without causing damage,” he says with
a laugh. He changed and delivered
tires as well.
John also worked for his father periodically while attending Ohio State
University, where he began as an accounting major and later switched to
international finance. He spent his last
semester studying in Europe and graduated in Holland in 1969. He spent the
next couple of months traveling around
the continent with a buddy but stayed
in touch with family back home. “My
Charles “Charlie” Marshall Sr. (center on couch, holding plaque) laid the
foundation for Grismer Tire Co.’s success, according to John Marshall (left
on couch; his brother, Charles “Rusty” Marshall II, is seated on the right.)
For you historians, in the back are, from left to right, Bill Tierney, Tom
Mertz, Bill Hand, Harry Morr, Dennis Berger and Sam Angelo.
brother had written me and talked on
the phone about how things were going
back at the business and said, ‘Come
on, it would be a lot of fun, the two of
us in it.’ So I came back.”
MTD Dealer Profile: John Marshall
Full name: John L. Marshall.
Family: Karen (wife).
My favorite childhood memory:
boating on Lake Erie.
My favorite sport: skiing.
My favorite athlete: Mario Andretti,
because of all the support he’s given
Grismer Tire Co. and the tire industry
— and he’s also a world champion!
My favorite books: “The Prince” by
Machiavelli; “Paradise Lost” by Milton
(the hardest book I’ve ever read but I
was stunned by Milton’s intellect and
creativity); and anything by Dickens,
Michener or Hemingway.
My favorite food: cheese fondue.
My favorite politicians: George
Washington, Winston Churchill.
Am I a morning or night person?
night.
My goals in life are: to go to Antarctica and fly myself around the world
(personal); to continue the growth of
Grismer Tire Co. and to provide an atmosphere of security and growth for
our employees (business).
20
A perfect evening for me is: to come
back after skiing all day for a nice bottle of wine and a fondue dinner.
The best advice my parents gave
me: Don’t follow the crowd and don’t
smoke. (It took me 35 years to follow
the latter advice!)
The greatest thing about the tire industry today: What we sell, nobody
wants to buy but they have to have it.
I’d rather be in the tire and auto repair
business than selling grand pianos. It’s
not glamorous, but it’s dependable.
And if you are willing to put in the effort, you can obtain a nice living.
My advice to a dealer who is just
starting out: Make sure you really
enjoy what you are doing, since you
will be doing it for over one-third of
your life; it has to give you pleasure. If
it does, work hard, be as diligent on
those parts of the business you like
the least as you are on those that you
like the most, and see my answer to
the previous question.
Meanwhile, Westinghouse had made
him a lucrative offer. Charlie told John
he would match Westinghouse’s proposal, which “was about what MBAs
were being paid at the time.” He
handed the company’s offer to his father, “and he looked at it, then looked
up at me and said, ‘Take it! You’re not
worth that much!’”
But John decided to stick with Grismer Tire. “Some people say working
for your dad is hard, but in my case, it
was an extremely easy thing to do. I
was excited about it.”
Growing up, John had periodically
dreamed about running Grismer Tire
one day, but Charlie never pushed his
sons in that direction. “He didn’t want
us to feel obligated. I don’t think dad
wanted to look back 10 years later and
have me say, ‘I really didn’t want to do
this, but you wanted me to, so I did it.’”
John entered the business “with my
eyes wide open. That really enthused
dad, and it was a great deal.” He started
retreading and repairing tires in the dealership’s retread shop. “We were stronger
in other areas but weak there. Dad was
happy to see that I was willing to take
whatever job needed to be done.”
John also managed retread shop personnel, which he describes as a “steep
learning curve. Right out of school you
don’t know anything about manageContinued on page 22...
www.mtdealer.com
him that. He had a
more locations, so we
1956 Buick.
added two more (out“‘No, I don’t want
lets) within a couple of
ment. It was a very good lesson to learn
those,’ he said. ‘Too
years,” increasing the
in how to relate to people with different
much money! The
dealership’s total store
backgrounds, educations, goals and modamn car is old!’
count to six.
tivations.” John enjoyed the job and
“Well, dad was
“We ran with six until
worked to improve the plant’s producjust walking in and
we added a seventh
tivity and efficiency.
that’s all he heard.
down in Fairfield (a
Charlie then decided to consolidate
And dad said,
Cincinnati, Ohio, subthe shop, which had operated as a sepa‘Yeah, but I bet you
urb). Then we started
rate entity, into Grismer Tire’s commer(the car) will go 100
Grismer Tire of Lima
cial division, which was under Rusty’s
mph.’ The guy spun
(Ohio), which was a
supervision (Rusty eventually took over
around, looked at
commercial operation.”
the division in the early 1970s).
dad as if his family
Years later, in 1988,
John moved to the retail side of the
name had been be- Grismer Tire President Rusty Grismer Tire would acbusiness and started purchasing tires,
Marshall, who runs the commersmirched, and said,
quire the tire operahiring employees and making key marcial division, says there are two
‘A hundred? Fella, I ingredients to success in sales. tions of three Daytonketing decisions. Charlie’s advice to
tell ya, it’ll do 115 if “You have to have a sincere in- area Elder-Beerman
the brothers “was on-going. Dad was
terest in other people, and you department stores, “and
it’ll do five!’
extremely gracious, sharing not only
“Dad got a big have to be able to show it.”
we’ve added ever
the financial part (of the business), but
smile on his face
since.” Grismer Tire
his time and coaching. And of course,
and said, ‘See, you need good tires,’”
made its most recent acquisition, Dethe older we got, the wiser he became,
and then up-sold the customer to a
troit Tire, in 2000.
in our eyes.”
much more expensive set. “It wasn’t
John and his brother implemented
John and Rusty are still awestruck by
the ‘Five Steps to a Tire Sale,’” says
changes as they got more involved with
Charlie’s knack for making sales and
John. “How do you teach that to somethe business, including raising manfriends at the same time. “One day,
body?”
agers’ starting salaries and improving
while I was running a store, dad came
pay structures. They also began putting
in to see how I was doing,” recalls
more emphasis on automotive service.
John. “A customer had come in and
Intelligent design
“Back when radials first came out, our
wanted the cheapest thing we had. So I
With John aboard, the dealership —
dad said they would drastically change
first talked to him about retreads.
which consisted of four outlets — enthe business.” Grismer Tire was selling
“‘No, I don’t want any retreads,’ he said.
tered an expansion phase. In 1972,
Michelins at the time “and we were
“We had a Firestone Nylon Air,
Grismer Tire launched Dayton Tire
making a strong margin. Then radials
which was primarily designed to go up
Sales by renaming one of its existing
started going to more dealerships and
and down the driveway, so I showed
stores. “Dayton Tire wanted us to add
everyone was getting into the tire business. Margins started going down.”
The Marshalls’ goal was to have service cover their expenses “and the net
would be what we made on tires.” The
strategy, which was ahead of its time,
paid off and Grismer Tire was able to
stay ahead of the pack. “The auto service business is a lot harder than selling
tires,” says John. “It takes more time
and explanation to the customer, and
more personnel problems (since) service requires more labor, by definition.” Today, service comprises 60% to
65% of the dealership’s total sales at its
24 retail stores.
John and Rusty assumed many of
their father’s responsibilities “in a
gradual manner. There was a tremendous age difference between my dad
and us, so he was anxious for us to take
John Marshall attributes much of Grismer Tire’s success to his employees.
“Business has a life of its own and is not one particular person,” he says.
Continued on page 24...
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Continued from page 22...
over some of his (duties).” Charlie
worked full-time right up to the year
before his death in 1989 at the age of
88. (Gertrude passed away the same
year, several months before Charlie.)
“He was passionate in his beliefs. He
was good about it if you made a mistake, not harping on it. And he was
willing to relive his mistakes and what
he learned from them. We were very
close to our dad.”
‘We really respond to customers’
Grismer Tire’s commercial division takes its work personally
Loyalty goes both ways
John attributes part of Grismer
Tire’s growth to the company’s fiscal
solvency and penchant for being in the
right position to capitalize on opportunities. “Since we started during the
Great Depression, one of the things
dad lectured strongly about was not to
be in debt. We’ve always been in a financially strong position.
“And some of it has just been
serendipitous. We’d (happen) to be
grooming people for a new location
when something would come up, and
we’d be able to get them in right away.”
Grismer Tire has nearly 240 employees, many of whom have been with the
company for decades. Commercial tire
salesman Robert Hupp started with
Grismer Tire in 1954. Woody Blizzard,
81, started with the dealership in 1959;
he now helps John with clerical work.
Jerry McCormick, who is a partner
with the Marshalls in Grismer Tire’s
13-outlet Associate Tire spin-off, has
been with the company since 1988 after
meeting John and Charlie several years
earlier. “I was impressed with how
hard they worked and their dedication,” says McCormick. “They worked
all day; they didn’t take time off to golf
or go fishing.” Steve Whitehead, the
Marshalls’ partner in Dayton Tire
Sales, started with Grismer in 1976.
John credits the dealership’s longterm success to the staff that he and his
brother have assembled. “It shouldn’t
be ‘Dealer of the Year.’ It should be
‘Tire Company of the Year.’ Our people are as instrumental as I am.”
There’s no “magic” to employee retention, according to John. “They want
to be well-compensated, but they need
more than that. Opportunity for improvement, opportunity to participate
24
“We’re showing customers that retreads are reliable, dependable and
safe,” says Rusty Marshall (right, with, Don Rawlins, retread plant manager, left, and Tim Stover, commercial general manager, center).
Grismer Tire Co.’s commercial division plays a major role in the dealership’s overall success.
The unit, headed by Grismer Tire
President Charles “Rusty” Marshall II,
is outperforming many of its competitors in a difficult economy. “Our new
tire (sales) remain about even,” says
Rusty, “but our service has had nice
growth, and we’ve had some nice increases over the past two or three
years” in retreading. In fact, the company is on record pace for retread production this year, according to Tim
Stover, Grismer Tire commercial general manager.
“We’ve never been the biggest, but
we want to produce the finest retreads
that money can buy — a retread that’s
not just as good as a new tire, but better!” says Rusty.
Grismer Tire’s Bandag retread plant
workers have nearly 112 combined
years of experience. “I’m so proud of
what they turn out,” says Rusty. “We
have an extremely low failure rate.
Last year, we had an account who ran
535 retreads, and not one retread
failed.”
A successful retread depends on
four factors, he says:
1. To start off, “The (retread) cus-
in decision-making, and the feeling
that they’re contributing for real” all
play a part.
John is directly involved in the hiring
process, “depending on the depart-
tomer has to buy a high-quality tire.”
2. “That tire has to receive proper
maintenance during its original life.”
3. “You need a quality-driven retreader to retread it.”
4. “The retread has to be taken care
of just like when it was new.”
“If one of the four is missing, it’s a
calamity,” says Rusty.
Grismer Tire’s commercial division
also performs its share of section repairs. “We take every adjustment as a
personal matter.”
And Rusty is extremely proud of the
unit’s road service capabilities. “We
truly give 24-hour, 365-days-a-year
service.”
For each service call, even those at
night, Rusty sends his service manager into the shop to open it up for the
service truck driver “and to make sure
all paperwork is filled out properly and
completely.” After the job is done, the
manager personally follows up with
customers to make sure they are satisfied. “I’ve sent men east of Columbus (Dayton is in the southwestern
part of Ohio) and we’ve gone as far as
Cincinnati (60 miles southwest of Dayton) to service competitors’ customers.” Often, “we’re the only port in
the storm.”
ment.” Rusty, McCormick and Whitehead normally have final say on new
hires for their respective departments.
“Enthusiasm is the absolute strongest
Continued on page 26...
www.mtdealer.com
Bandag salutes
John Marshall
Tire Dealer-of-the-Year
John, we value your leadership in the industry.
Bandag is proud to have a long term relationship
with you and your business, Grismer Tire in
Dayton, Ohio.
Circle 110 on card
Continued from page 24...
point” in evaluating a potential employee, says John. “There are other
things you’d like to have, like honesty,
but some of those qualities are so (intangible), how can you tell during an
interview? You can’t. But give me an
enthused person and I’ll take him any
day of the week. Anything else we can
Grismer Tire has earned a wide
range of regional and national business awards. Grismer Tire partner
Jerry McCormick is on the right.
train.”
John demonstrates a great rapport
with his employees by the way he
warmly greets them by name, inquires
about the well-being of their families,
laughs with them, and beams with
pride when discussing their work ethic
and craftsmanship. “If you need anything, he’s always around,” says Bob
Kemper, who oversees seven Grismer
stores in and around Dayton.
The Marshalls make it a point to share
financial and other company information with all employees, from upperlevel executives to the latest hires.
“Each store gets its own financial statement, in addition to checks that have
been charged to the store,” says John.
“We encourage them to see how their
expenses are being generated” and in
what areas they’ve done well. “Everybody likes to know how they’re doing.”
John meets with store managers on a
monthly basis and encourages them to
meet with their employees at least
once a week. “Jerry McCormick taught
me the big thing is to get rid of their
complaints. If you’ve gotten rid of their
complaints, what’s left? If something’s
not working right, get it fixed. If you
need a particular tool for a job, get it.”
Concentrating on things they don’t
26
to go to work and do something
have or should have is counterproducdumb?’ Nobody does. Yet you talk to
tive, he says. “We show them that
some employers and that’s what they
we’re willing to have them direct us.”
feel like their employees are doing!
Grismer Tire store managers have
Whose fault is it? There’s a good
the autonomy to make major decisions
chance the employer hasn’t trained
affecting their operations. But most of
them. And there’s probably a very
the dealership’s strategies are plotted
good chance that the employer hasn’t
at the top of the organization. John
sat down and thought out what he or
calls it “management by objective.”
she really wants their personnel to do.”
John, Rusty and others literally write
He cites aircraft carriers as an illustradown their goals for the company “and
tion. “In my mind, they’re the most
then cover that with our people. It
complicated things in the world. You
forces us to sit down and determine
name it, an aircraft carrier has everywhere we want to be and what we want
thing going against it: loud noise, heavy
to achieve.” Top management also reequipment, and in wartime, think of the
views employee suggestions. When
pressure. And who do they have running
workers set objectives, they feel obligit? Kids! Multi-million dollar planes
ated to reach them, according to John.
moving all over the deck of a multi-bil“It becomes their goal, not our goal.
They’ve bought into
it.
“Go into any retail
establishment. There
are people who really
feel that they’re part of
the business. I can’t always define it, but I
know it when I see it.”
Grismer Tire employees advise John
on equipment to buy,
brands to carry “and
even (on the viability
of) some locations.
We never decide on
equipment ourselves;
we get our mechanics
together and have
them review it. Major
(equipment) purchases
are done by them.”
Workers are evaluated on an annual
basis. “Normally, when
we do evaluations, we
want the immediate
supervisor to put down Tire dealers, as a group, “have been able to flourish”
in the face of incredible competition, says John Marboth what (employshall. “That’s a heck of an accomplishment and tire
ees) are good at and dealers should be very proud of that. I’m proud of the
what they need to do industry and I’m proud of our company.”
for improvement. This
lion dollar ship — all done by kids.
does a couple of things: one, it forces
“Someone has taken the time to figmanagers to give their thoughts on imure out exactly what they want the perprovement, and two, it gives them a
son to do and has spent the time trainguideline on what they should be
ing them.
working on.
“Take a guy who is a tire changer,
“I’ve often wondered how many peoand that’s a very important position.
ple get up in the morning and say, ‘You
Who trains him? What’s expected of
know, it’s a beautiful day — I’m going
www.mtdealer.com
member of the Midwest Tire Association, a buying group that also consists
of Massillon, Ohio-based Ziegler Tire
& Oil Co., Lexington, Ky.-based Ken
Towery’s Auto Care Centers, and several other dealerships in the region; association members meet twice a year.
“I should probably spend the most
time on personnel, because that’s our
most valuable asset. But you have to
be just as diligent on the parts of the
business you’re not as interested in.”
John enjoys “delving into the things
John Marshall reviews figures with
Grismer Tire partner Steve Whitehead. “Our best ideas come from
the people who work for us.”
him? What checklist do you have to
make sure everything has been covered? Most people will respond if they
feel what you’re asking is fair, if you
aren’t arbitrary and if you’re consistent. The problem is most (employers)
know this but don’t practice it.”
John certainly does. Grismer Tire
partners with Dayton-based Sinclair
Community College’s auto repair programs for tech training. The dealership
pays 100% tuition if one of its techs
earns an A or a B and half of the tuition in the event of a C. Techs also receive their normal salaries while attending classes. Grismer Tire will even
reimburse employees’ tuition if they
pursue other majors. “We’ve paid for
courses that aren’t directly related to
us. I’d pay for someone to take a
course in history. A better-educated
person is just better, period. And the
better person you have, the better
company you have.”
Grismer Tire also takes advantage of
supplier training programs for salespeople. John prefers daytime sessions
“so people are fresh and alert, instead
of doing it after they’ve worked a full
day. You can’t train enough.”
that need to be fixed the most. One of
the biggest advantages to being in your
own business is that you can give yourself variety.”
He delegates as much as he can, explaining that his staff is more than capable of handling any task he throws their
way. “Is there anything I do that somebody else can’t? I hope not. If so, I
should never take a vacation,” which,
he notes, has never been a problem.
He spends much of his time with his
Continued on page 28...
...and the winner of this year’s
“Dealer of the Year” Award is...........
...John Marshall
Congratulations John on your hard work and
dedication to your customers. The staff at
Nokian Tyres thanks you from the
bottom of our Hakkapeliittas!
Onward and upward
A large part of John’s workday is
spent wading through volumes of paperwork. “It’s necessary, but a lot of
stuff can get lost in that. A good part of
it is looking over figures. I like to look
over maintenance items and I definitely want to see customer adjustments.
“I spend part of my time on advertising and purchasing.” John is a founding
MTD SEPTEMBER 2003
Circle 111 on card
27
Continued from page 27...
wife, Karen, a realtor whom he met
“on the way to a hurricane.” Years
ago, John and Rusty hopped a flight
down to Florida to secure a boat they
had anchored there before a hurricane
hit. “We got as far as Atlanta and
Delta canceled all flights down,” says
John. He’d known Karen’s sister, who
was living in Atlanta at the time, for
several years. “I called her up to see if
she wanted to have dinner since my
brother and I had to spend the night.”
That’s when he met Karen, who relocated to California shortly thereafter
and fell out of touch with John. She
eventually moved back to Ohio, and
nine years later, happened to be working on a property that the Marshalls
owned. “She called and asked if I remembered her,” recalls John. “I said,
‘Yes,’ and she met with me to submit
an offer.” The deal never came to
fruition, but they started seeing each
other and married in 1995. Karen now
lends her expertise to Grismer Tire,
handling commercial real estate issues,
checking stores “to see how they appeal to females,” offering input on ad
campaigns and serving as a sounding
board for various ideas.
As a teenager, John enjoyed tennis,
collected stamps and “loved cars,” a
passion that has carried over to the
present. “My first car was a Hillman
Huskie,” a vehicle that his mother
picked up for him in England while attending an International Confederation of Women Attorneys convention.
“It was English drive, so I had to learn
how to drive on the wrong side of the
road. My next car was a Triumph.”
Rusty also had a Triumph, “and both
of them were red.”
John and Karen are long-time supporters of public radio and have helped
sponsor fund-raising activities for the
cause. Karen also is on the volunteer
board of the Dayton Philharmonic.
The Marshalls are involved with The
100 Club, a Dayton-based group that
offers educational assistance to the
children of slain or severely injured po-
Media innovators
Grismer Tire boasts a long history of creative advertising
Grismer Tire has a longstanding tradition of successfully differentiating
itself
from competitors through creative marketing and advertising. At the forefront has been its use of
television.
The Dayton, Ohiobased dealership’s relationship with TV dates
back to the medium’s
infancy in the early
1950s, when it sponsored a program on
Dayton’s CBS affiliate called
“Swap Shop.” The half-hourlong show took calls from
viewers who wanted to exchange items with one another. John Marshall describes its original concept:
“A lot of people who’d never
been out of the country had
come back from World War II
(with items obtained during
their travels, many of them
exotic artifacts). Their wives
would see what they’d
picked up and would say,
‘Get that out of the house!’ I
mean, how many samurai
swords do you need? It was
stuff like that.”
“Swap Shop” ran yearround through the early
1960s in an era when even
big programs like “The Ed
28
Sullivan Show” took seasonal breaks, according to
John. According to official
Grismer Tire lore, a young
Jonathan Winters even auditioned to host the show.
John’s father, then-Grismer
Tire owner Charles “Charlie”
Marshall Sr., appeared on
camera occasionally. “Of
course, it was required
viewing for us,” says John
with a laugh. “It was one
thing that dad did allow us
to watch!”
Eventually, TV became
more of a recognized
medium, and, as a result,
the cost of producing and
airing “Swap Shop” became
more prohibitive. This shift
forced Grismer Tire to reevaluate how it used TV.
“Part of the problem with TV
is trying to design the correct message for the people
who are tuning in. It’s ex-
pensive, so what you’re presenting needs to be in an effective format. The other
thing is that you’re going up
against multi-million dollar
productions from large corporations; how do you make
your (commercials) look
good?”
Grismer Tire now uses
a lot of 15-second spots,
which are easier and less
expensive to produce. “The
involved more than 400 students from nine Dayton-area
high schools. They were
given the assignment of creating compelling print ads to
promote Grismer Tire’s auto
service capabilities while
emphasizing the dealership’s tire selection. The ads
were judged by marketing
executives “and a winner
was picked from each
school,” he says. “The ads
were then run in a
newspaper so the
general public
could vote on
them.” John, with
Bridgestone/-Firestone North American Tire LLC’s help,
brought racing
legend Mario Andretti in to present
an award to the finalist. The promoGrismer Tire imported racing legtion “was e x c i t end Mario Andretti to present an
I
was
award to the finalist of the dealer- i n g .
stunned at the
ship’s “Design an Ad” contest.
quality of the ads.
idea is to get top-of-mind And we got a tremendous
awareness. No ad is going to amount of press.” The consave your business; what test also left Grismer Tire
you want is for someone to with a pool of ads it can use
call you.”
in the future. John wants to
John’s most recent mar- repeat the competition next
keting brainstorm was a year, with students design“Design an Ad” contest that ing TV ad campaigns.
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Welcome to the club
John Marshall joins elite fraternity
John Marshall is the 11th Tire Dealer
of the Year, an annual competition
sponsored by Modern Tire Dealer.John
will receive an etched plaque commemorating the honor, and a framed
portrait. And a $1,000 check will be
split between the charities of his
choice: the Salvation Army and Chaminade High School, which he and his
brother attended.
Johnl was chosen by independent
judges Anne and Russ Evans of Tyres
2000, a tire importer/exporter in Hebron, Conn.; Saul Ludwig, a managing
director at McDonald Investments Inc.
in Cleveland, Ohio, and author of
MTD’s Ludwig Report; Richard Morgan
of Morgan Marketing Solutions in Dallas, Texas; and 2001 Tire Dealer of the
lice officers and firefighters. The group
has put dozens of kids through college.
“We don’t broadcast it. A lot of policemen and firemen don’t even know
about it. It’s not for personal accolades.”
While many tire dealers provide financial support for athletic activities,
John donates money to local high
school band programs. “There are
more people in a school band than on a
little league baseball team. The whole
family often is involved.” John played
the alto clarinet while in high school
but doesn’t profess to be a musician.
“My parents wasted money on piano
lessons when I was young,” he laughs.
“Now the only thing I can play is
‘Chopsticks!’”
John also contributes to The Salvation Army, which he calls “a great organization. One of the biggest reasons
is that their expense ratio is low.
Money that goes to them is used for
what it should be.”
However, John’s primary passion is
aviation. He’s flown in small planes
since his father, who was a pilot, first
starting taking him and his brother up
on short flights. (Rusty is a pilot as
well.) “As a kid I’d sit on his lap and
he’d work the rudder while I’d work
the wing controls.” John was authorized to fly solo before he even had his
driver’s license! “My mom had to drive
me to the airport.” In his late teens, he
MTD SEPTEMBER 2003
Year and Morgan Tire & Auto Inc.
founder Larry Morgan.
Last year’s Tire Dealer of the Year
was Tom Raben, president of Raben
Tire Co. Other Tire Dealer of the Year
winners include Les Schwab, Les
Schwab Tire Centers, Prineville, Ore.
(2000); Raynal Pearson, Pearson Tire
Co., Richfield, Utah (1999); Tom Gegax,
Team Tires Plus Ltd., Burnsville, Minn.
(1998); Walt Dealtrey Sr., Service Tire
Truck Centers, Bethlehem, Pa. (1997);
David Stringer, Stringer Tire Co., Jacksonville, Fla. (1996); Tony Troilo,
Rosson & Troilo Motor Co. Inc., Brandy
Station, Va. (1995); Jerry Bauer, Bauer
Built Inc., Durand, Wis. (1994); and
Barry Steinberg, Direct Tire Sales, Watertown, Mass. (1993).
frequently flew to other states and
later even commuted to college by
plane for a weekend. “You weren’t allowed to have a car there, but they
didn’t have a rule against planes.”
For a couple of years, John flew in
acrobatic competitions, placing as high
as second place in a contest held in the
early 1990s. In 1994, he and Karen flew
across the Atlantic to Europe by themselves, accomplishing one of John’s
long-time dreams. “We flew to Northern Canada and then to Greenland.
Then we flew north of the Arctic Circle
and went to Iceland. From Iceland we
flew to Scotland, and took the same
route home several weeks later.” They
logged 45 air hours round-trip.
Flying brings a sense of independence, according to John — and also
responsibility. “It makes you focus on
what you’re doing as opposed to anything else. Everything in aviation is
geared toward you being responsible. I
think it’s super training for kids.” John
presently flies around 100 hours a year
— “not nearly enough.”
People make it happen
The Marshalls have positioned Grismer Tire as a quality service provider.
“On service, we’re definitely not the
(least expensive),”
John.<None>...
“But we
Continuedsays
on page
Congratulations John
from your friends at
Providing software for the best
Tire Dealers for over 25 years.
WWW.MaddenCo.Com
812 474-6245
Circle 112 on card
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Continued from page 29...
want to be perceived as giving the best
value. Without good quality, people
won’t patronize you, regardless of
price.”
But after 30 years as a key decisionmaker, he admits that the way Grismer
Tire operates and how he approaches
it have changed.
“It’s not as personal” in terms of
dealing with both employees and customers. And working with tire manufacturers “depends on their changing
personnel. We’re more consistent than
the rubber companies as far as (personnel) goes. The manufacturers have
the personalities of whoever’s in there
at the time, and sometimes it’s better
than at other times.
“We certainly need our suppliers. It
works best when we’re both on the
same page and are striving for the
same thing.
“We can’t take advantage of them.
When you start doing that, it’s not a
fair game. And if it’s not a fair game, it
won’t last.” The dealership sells Bridgestone, Firestone, Dayton, Nokian,
Michelin, BFGoodrich, Continental,
General, Uniroyal, Carlisle, Trivant
and Falken tires.
Grismer Tire faces many of the same
challenges other independent tire dealerships do. “Medical expenses are
going through the roof. In Ohio, workers’ comp just went up by 75%.” John
also is frustrated by what he calls “irrational tort concepts.”
“But try to find one person who says
it’s easier to do business today than it
was before, going back to my father
and his father’s father. It’s like the
‘people don’t work as hard as they
used to’ syndrome; I don’t believe that.
People work as hard, if not harder.”
Margins on tires may be less than
they were decades ago, “but we have
things that make up for that, like auto
service. And we have tools that make
us more efficient,” like computer inventory systems. “Productivity has
gone up.
“The challenges we had in the past
are in the past and we’ve forgotten
how difficult they were.”
John wants to continue cultivating
Grismer Tire “in a steady pattern,
slowly but surely. We’re not interested
30
in more locations just to say we have
more locations. We expect them all to
be profitable.
“We also don’t want to get overleveraged. I want to be able to sleep at
night and not worry about how we’re
going to make a bank payment. I don’t
want to be a slave to a corporation or
to outside financial investors; that’s
very important to me.”
John is unashamed to say that the
health of Grismer Tire takes precedence in his life, second only to his
family. To him, the company is an extension of his clan. “What is business?
and in many cases, more instrumental
(in Grismer Tire’s success) than I am.
The perspective they bring, their enthusiasm — we would be nowhere near
where we are without them, and I’m
not being humble when I say that. It’s
the honest-to-goodness truth.
“There are no shortcuts that I’ve
found in business. There’s somebody
out there who’s just as talented as you
are. What is it that makes Grismer Tire
different? Anybody can get the products we sell. Anybody can get good locations. Anybody can buy the equipment. But they can’t buy our people;
“I don’t want to be a slave to a corporation or to outside financial investors,” says John Marshall, checking a machine at Grismer Tire’s Bandag
retread shop in downtown Dayton, Ohio. “That’s very important to me.”
It’s personnel. We’re all people. I have
loyalty to my employees.
“Priorities will change as demands
(shift). But there are some very important individuals in the business I feel
very obligated to.”
He describes Grismer Tire as “a living thing. Technically, I don’t run the
business that much; it’s everybody in it,
and I’m working for them to a great
degree. People have their own agendas, their own desires and they’re only
going to stay if there’s a future for
them.”
John admits he never envisioned the
amount of expertise currently at Grismer Tire’s disposal. “The talent we
have — Steve Whitehead, Jerry McCormick and others — are every bit,
that’s what makes Grismer different.”
And to an extent, that’s also what
makes independent tire dealers different, John believes. “Who are tire dealers competing against? Some of the
largest corporations in the world. Sears
isn’t exactly a local outfit; neither is
Wal-Mart. Yet tire dealers have been
able to flourish. That’s a heck of an accomplishment.
“We tell our people, ‘When you go
home at the end of the day, you have
a lot to be proud of. You’ve competed against the best and you’ve
done well.’
“We compete against very sophisticated organizations that have unbelievable resources compared to what we
have. I’m proud of the industry and
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