Bob Dunlap of Dunlap & Kyle Dies

Bob Dunlap, longtime chairman and CEO of Dunlap & Kyle Co. Inc., one of the country’s largest tire distributors, has died. He was 96 years old.

Bob’s father, John “Jack” Dunlap, and a cousin, S.H. “Hudson” Kyle, founded Dunlap & Kyle in 1929, the same year Bob was born, in the town of Batesville, Miss., which remains the company’s home.

After graduating from high school in 1947, Bob went to college and then joined the U.S. Navy, serving aboard the USS Everglades in Europe. He returned to Batesville in 1953 and joined his father at work, eventually taking over the family company. 

Bob transformed Dunlap & Kyle into a $1 billion-plus-a-year business, with nearly 20 distribution centers and more than 40 retail stores, the latter of which operate under the Gateway Tire & Service Center banner.

Bob was named MTD’s Tire Dealer of the Year in 2022. (Click here to read the full article.)

He is survived by his devoted wife of 36 years, Cyd Dunlap; his sister, Sarah Dell Gray; his five children, Michael (Beth Ann), Joe, Angela Waldrup, Amy Totarlo and Richard (Alicia); 10 grandchildren; seven great grandchildren; nine rescue dogs, three cats, two squirrels, a cow and swayback horse.

A visitation will take place this Saturday, Jan. 17, at the Gateway Tire Indoor Practice Facility at South Panola High School from 10:00 to 1:00 p.m. Central Time, with the service starting at 1:00. A private burial will be held immediately afterward. Wells Funeral Home of Batesville has charge of the services. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to charities such as Tubb Spay & Neuter Clinic, Palmer Home for Children, Boy Scouts of America or Panola County Community Chest.