Best-selling author Tom Gegax served as Chairman and CEO (head coach) of Tires Plus Stores for twenty-four years. By the time Tom sold the company he founded to Bridgestone/Firestone in July 2000, it had mushroomed from a napkin sketch into a market leader with 150 upscale stores in ten states and $200 million in revenue. The company was so tightly managed that Tom bypassed outside investors to retain ownership control.
Pioneering the tough-minded, warm-hearted “coaching” style of management, Tires Plus under Tom had a healthy corporate culture that was legendary in business circles for its focus on the well-being of its employees and customers (or teammates and guests). The unique pairing of hard-nosed efficiency and a caring environment was a core ingredient in the company’s secret sauce.
Tom’s management methods have been featured in national newspapers and magazines and on television—The New York Times, Fast Company, ABC, FOX, CNN, CNBC, PBS. He has been named a Midwest Entrepreneur of the Year by Inc. magazine and Ernst & Young.
Some of Tom’s speaking and consulting clients include Al Gore Enterprises, Farmers Insurance, Detroit Chamber of Commerce, Domino’s Pizza, International Franchise Association, National Association of Women Business Owners, PriceWaterhouse Coopers, Sandler Sales System, The StarTribune, and Students In Free Enterprise.
Tom has served on numerous corporate boards, including Pacific Booker Minerals, Great Clips Haircutters, ABRA Autobody, Engineering America, APU Solutions, and Deepak Chopra Enterprises,. Tom has also served on many nonprofit boards, including Center for Science in the Public Interest, Waterkeeper Alliance, World Business Academy, and the Center for Ethical Business Cultures.
Tom’s Big Book of Small Business: You Don’t Have to Run Your Business By The Seat Of Your Pants (HarperCollins) is endorsed by America’s leading business minds, including Ken Blanchard (The One-Minute Manager), Harvey Mackay (Swim with the Sharks) and Richard Schulze, Founder and Chairman of Best Buy.
Tom founded Gegax Advisory Services, with offices in Minneapolis and San Diego, in 2000 to share his Big Book Business Management System with growing companies. Learn more at www.gegax.com or e-mail Tom at tom@gegax.com.