A trio of Marine Corps veterans in Tennessee has turned a combined 44 years of military experience into a fast-growing tire business.
Tom Coke, Joe Eltringham and Derrick Martin opened their first Big O Tires LLC store in March 2017. They started with two stores in Knoxville and one in Murfeesboro, and have added two more locations in Knoxville.
They've increased their car counts and experienced double digit sales increases.
“Tom, Joe and Derrick are a remarkable team and we are fortunate to have them as part of the Big O Tires family,” says John Kairys, vice president and general manager of Big O Tires. “They bring their skills they learned while dedicating their lives to the United States Marine Corps to work every single day; they are leaders in the industry, the community, and the military and we thank them for their dedication and for their service.”
Big O Tires offers a franchise program specificaly for U.S. veterans. The company waives the initial franchisee fee of $30,000 for a qualified veteran's first Big O Tires store. The program is available to qualified individuals who either have received an honorable discharge from one of the U.S. Armed Forces (Army, Navy, Air Forces, Coast Guard or Marine Corps), or are currently serving in one of the U.S. Armed Forces and are eligible to receive an honorable discharge.
“We’re honored to have the opportunity to represent the U.S. Marine Corps; a lot of what we learned while serving our country has served us well in business,” says Joe Eltringham. “We looked for the right partner who would support our initiatives and our business and Big O Tires doesn’t just do that, the team goes above and beyond to make sure that we have what we need to be successful and so much more.”
Coke, Eltringham and Martin are part of a network of nearly 450 franchisee-owned Big O Tires stores. For more information about the franchise, visit www.BigOTires.com.
