Walter Lybeck, the chief financial officer of Tire Factory Inc. who has served as the cooperative's interim CEO since August 2015, has been named the permanent CEO.
The announcement April 4, 2016, by Board Chairman Eric Gill fills the vacancy at the top. The former CEO, John Kreidel, left the job last summer after five years with the company.
“Our search committee, made up of five board members, completed a lengthy nationwide search to find a CEO with the skills to operate the company, grow its membership, and continue our history of profitable growth,” says Gill. “After interviewing several qualified candidates, the search committee was unanimous in selecting Walter as the candidate with the right blend of experience, operational, financial skills, and cultural fit required to do the job successfully. Walter has earned a great reputation among members as interim CEO, and his selection will be very popular.”
“Since joining the company”, Lybeck said, “I’ve been excited about Northwest Tire Factory’s business model, the quality of its members, employees, and financial performance; but most of all its potential for profitable growth. I’m looking forward to helping the company achieve its full potential.”
Lybeck joined the company in 2010 as its CFO. Prior to joining Tire Factory, he was director of finance and accounting at Rejuvenation. He also worked in financial positions for Nautilus, Oregon Steel Mills, Intel and Delloitte. He earned his bachelor's degree in accounting at Linfield College.
He is married to Kay, and is the father of two children.
Tire Factory is located in Portland, Ore., It is a member-owned cooperative begun in 1983. In 2015, it joined with Point S, a group of 3,700 independent tire stores worldwide, and is in the process of converting its Tire Factory stores to Point S Tire and Auto Service.
Read about Tire Factory's 2016 annual meeting, held in February, here. And view a slideshow of photos from the event, as well as photos of some of the first rebranded Point S stores, here.
For more information about Tire Factory, visit www.PointSTireandService.com.
