After Bob Mirman, the founder of West Coast Tire and Service Inc., died in October, his grandson wanted to find a way to honor the man who led him into the tire business. So he put a customer — an artist — to work on a 30-foot mural. Now Tom Eisenberg, co-owner and general manager of West Coast Tire, can look up to his grandfather any time he wants. Artist DJ Neff transformed the north wall of the Los Angeles tire dealership and Tire Pros franchise into a portrait of Mirman. "It's nice for me to see his face when I come in every morning.
"I came up with (the idea) one day. I just wanted to see his face everyday and let everyone know about his passing without forcing it on them," Eisenberg says.
The mural features the words "In loving memory of Bob Mirman" and a smiley photo of the tire dealer standing in the midst of tire racks. Mirman died Oct. 31, 2017, a few weeks shy of his 87th birthday.
Mirman opened West Coast Tire in 1970. In 2006 Eisenberg joined his grandfather in the business at age 16. He says his first job was when he was even younger. "When I was really young I used to help my grandfather put stamps on all the direct mail pieces he sent out." (Read more about Eisenberg in On the Rise, Modern Tire Dealer's group of young leaders in the industry.)
In an August 2017 story in MTD Mirman credited Eisenburg's digital touch with increasing customer counts, sales and gross profit.
