How the CEO of Alma Tire Companies Measures Success

Leading with retreading

Alma Tire Companies has two divisions: Modern Mechanics, which offers consumer tires and light vehicle repair, and ATS Fleet Service, which encompasses the firm’s commercial truck tire sales, service, retreading and distribution businesses.  

(The dealership has four retail tire outlets under its Modern Mechanics banner.) 

On the commercial tire side, Alma Tire Companies “leads with retreading,” says Grace.  

The dealership operates a Bandag retread plant whose volume has increased year-over-year. 

“We’re still very much growing into the footprint we have. 

“We’re not quite a year-and-a-half post-acquisition of Jerry’s Tire, which got us into the major markets in Michigan: Detroit and Grand Rapids.” 

In December 2023, Alma Tire Companies acquired Jerry’s Tire, a four-outlet commercial tire dealership based in Lake Odessa, Mich., that also had a presence in “The Motor City.” 

“The clientele over there had heard of Alma Tire, but we had to build trust,” says Grace. 

“We had to go out and show customers that we’re the real deal and that even a company from a small town was still big enough to take care of them and in some ways, we might be able to do it better. 

“It may be a cliche, but one thing we talk about, even internally, is that Alma Tire is ‘big enough to handle your fleet, but is still small enough to care.’  

“As more fleets try our products and services and see they can get good service — not just in their home location, but anywhere in the state of Michigan — more and more people are trusting us and we’re getting more and more opportunities all the time.” 

Grace credits Alma Tire Companies’ success in Detroit, its biggest market, to “having great people on our team,” as well as the dealership’s decentralized management approach.  

“When we went there, we had people who understood that market. For me, not really knowing the market well, I trusted my teammates who did. When someone says, ‘This is what we need to do,’ my job is to support them. 

“It’s going to be different doing business in Gaylord, Mich., than in Flint or Detroit.  The customers are different. But at the same time, the job is not terribly different and our values translate, no matter where we are.  

“It doesn’t matter what we’re doing — this is the way we do it. If we keep those things front of mind, everything else is details — the kind of truck you need, the kind of building you need. You let your people do their jobs. 

“I think the more autonomy we give, the better our business runs. We have guidelines for people to follow, of course. 

We have rules. But our managers are making their own decisions day-to-day.  

It helps us move faster. It helps us take care of the customer better. And it helps our people develop.  

“It helps them feel like what they’re doing is important and they have more ownership in our mission,” he explains. 

“I’ve told our managers, ‘If I didn’t trust you to make decisions, I wouldn’t have you doing this job.’  

“And if they mess up — and people do — we talk about it and figure out what we could have done differently and we move on.” 

The success of Alma Tire Companies’ retreading business is driven by the craftsmanship and dedication of its employees, says Grace.  

“We put a heavy emphasis on our people and the development of their skills and the culture of excellence inside that plant.  

“We have extremely low (employee) turnover. Our people are very proud of what they do. 

“For Alma, retreading is not an afterthought. It’s not a necessary evil. It’s a pillar of our company.  

“We treat everything and everyone in that plant with a huge amount of weight and a huge amount of respect. 

“The people who work in our plant really care about doing their job well. They really think — and rightly so — that their job is important and that (the retreaded) tire, when it leaves, is a representation of them and what they do and all the little decisions they make during the day.  

“We have a huge flag in our plant that says ‘Sweat the Details.’ It’s on everybody’s shirts. It really is a way of life inside our plant.” 

‘Provide great value'

Whether customers are buying retreads or new truck tires, Alma Tire Companies wants to maintain “a good balance” between national account and local fleet business, according to Grace. 

“Having started out in smaller communities, our business has always been heavily local book and that’s great. And we’re getting more and more into national account work.  

“There are advantages to both and for that reason, we’re going a er both (customer groups) similarly.  

“We want to pursue both with the same kind of enthusiasm.  

“Everything comes back to relationships. People buy from people.” 

Commenting on current demand for commercial truck tires, “I think everyone’s feeling the cooling effect right now and that’s something we all have to contend with,” says Grace.  

“We’re direct with a lot of different manufacturers and we’ve tried to align ourselves with companies that are building products that line up with what we’re trying to do. 

“We want to be able to provide great value. That’s something that’s important, regardless of economic conditions.  

“It gets you through the tough times and makes you a rock star in the good times.” 

The competitive landscape around Alma Tire Companies is shifting due to consolidation. But more mergers and acquisitions bring more opportunities, says Grace.  

“We just got news that a very, very strong competitor was acquired by a bigger dealer from out of state. That’s the nature of business. As options get fewer, it creates opportunities for a growing company like ours to come in and give a fleet another option.”