Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
This is Fred Ball for Zions Bank, speaking on business.
You will see some new signs on various retail tire stores around the state.
Dick Morrison Tire Company has been a common and trusted name in the tire business in Utah for many years. Whenever you saw a Grandma's Tire store you were seeing the retail operation of Dick Morrison Tire. If you were a wholesale customer you would do business directly with Dick Morrison Tire. Well, now those names are no more.
Nine retail Grandma's Tires located in Davis, Salt Lake and Utah Counties and the Morrison Wholesale warehouse on Redwood Road in Salt Lake City have been sold to a new partnership that will change the names to Big O Tires.
Mark Buker owns Big O Tires franchises in Tooele and at 910 So. 300 West in Salt Lake City. He has teamed with the home office of Big O to buy the Morrison empire. It is planned that Buker will operate three of the Grandma stores, and the other six outlets will be owned and operated by other franchisees.
I have had very positive experiences with the Big O operation. I think I recounted on this program in the past of the outstanding customer service experiences I had encountered. Once, I lost the coolant in my car on the way to the airport. I stopped at a Big O outlet on North Temple where an outstanding young man re-filled my radiator and then declined to charge me. Some months later I was in St. George when I noticed some vibration in my steering wheel. I stopped at the Big O on St. George Boulevard and was told my front wheels were out of balance. Again, the problem was rectified and there was no charge. Well, needless to say, whenever I have needed tire replacement or work, Big O is always on my list.
It is anticipated that the new stores will provide the same type of service as Grandma's. They have historically done about 50 percent of their business with tires and 50 percent on service work.
For Zions Bank, I'm Fred Ball. I'm speaking on business.
