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Cory Brown owns Cory’s Point S Tire in Rapid City, South Dakota. Under Cory’s leadership, the business has expanded to two locations, employing 35-40 staff members. Outside of business hours, Cory characterizes himself as an adrenaline junkie who enjoys car racing, snowboarding, motocross, and mountain climbing.
In this episode…
As any industry veteran can attest, the automotive field is immensely competitive. What makes a business thrive in this sector, and how do leaders overcome the challenges posed by rapid growth and changing market dynamics?
Cory Brown of Cory’s Point S Tire shares how he tackled these challenges head-on through grit, dedication, and strategic alliances. Raised in South Dakota, Cory took an unconventional path to success by embracing opportunities to learn and lead from a young age. His story unfolds with trials, triumphs, and the pivotal moment he joined Point S, a cooperative network that transformed his business landscape. Cory’s passion for cars and commitment to excellence, coupled with the support of a like-minded community, helped him build a business that stands out. Cory reveals how the Point S network provided tangible business benefits and fostered a sense of camaraderie and shared purpose.
In this episode of Gain Traction, Mike Edge welcomes Cory Brown to chat about the journey from an independent tire shop owner to a respected member of the Point S network. They delve into the intricacies of growing a family business in the tire industry and provide valuable insights into the power of building relationships, relentless work ethic, and leveraging the support of a cooperative network to achieve business goals.
Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:
- [02:00] How Cory Brown’s three sons keep him on his toes
- [02:29] Family dynamics and their role in toughness
- [03:14] Why Cory never backs down in arm wrestling
- [08:20] The benefits of attending Point S Tire Conference
- [09:08] Cory discusses his leap from sales to store management
- [10:38] The secrets behind Cory’s successful store leadership
- [11:27] What made Cory skeptical about joining Point S?
- [19:08] How Cory balances family and adrenaline-fueled hobbies
Resources mentioned in this episode:
- Cory Brown
- Cory’s Point S Tire
- Custer State Park
- Crazy Horse
- Mount Rushmore
- Mike Edge on LinkedIn
- Tread Partners
Quotable Moments:
- “Even though it’s home, the Black Hills is one of my favorite places.”
- “I have one button, and it’s on. I don’t really know how to play very well.”
- “I was the youngest guy in the shop, which was so weird.”
- “You gotta maintain that mental top position.”
- “I think my favorite part is seeing the inter-family relationships.”
Action Steps:
- Foster open communication within the team: Building a culture of open communication encourages sharing ideas and concerns, which can lead to innovative solutions.
- Embrace a collaborative environment: Fostering camaraderie within the workplace allows individuals to learn from one another and share different perspectives.
- Inspire a strong work ethic: Demonstrating commitment and diligence can motivate the rest of the team to follow suit.
- Leverage mentorship opportunities: Seeking guidance from more experienced individuals can provide valuable insights and help avoid common pitfalls.
- Prioritize work-life balance: Engaging in fulfilling activities outside of work can improve overall well-being and job satisfaction.
Transcript
Announcer:
Welcome to the Gain Traction Podcast, where we feature top tire and auto repair professionals, shop owners, industry executives, and thought leaders, and share their inspiring stories. Now, let’s get started with the show.
Mike:
Hey, folks. Welcome back to the Gain Traction Podcast. I am Mike Edge, your host. I am still at this year’s Annual Point S Tire Conference in Amelia Island, Florida. It’s been an awesome event. My guest right now is Cory Brown, owner of Cory’s Point S Tire in Rapid City, South Dakota.
But before we begin, this podcast is brought to you by Tread Partners and its educational tidbit today. When it comes to your PPC budget and ad spend, don’t put all your ad spend with Google in one bucket. Divide it up for accountability and control, do some research. I think you’ll find it well worth it. So let’s get started.
Cory Brown, welcome to the Gain Traction Podcast.
Cory:
Thank you for having me. I appreciate it.
Mike:
So tell us a little bit about yourself. You got two locations, you’re from South Dakota. Did you grow up there?
Cory:
I did. I did. I was born in California, which is where my mom’s family is from, but I was raised in South Dakota.
Mike:
Awesome. Beautiful country.
Cory:
It is. We live in the Black Hills.
Mike:
Oh, nice.
Cory:
Even though it’s home, it’s one of my favorite places.
Mike:
That’s awesome. Did you grow up playing sports, anything like that?
Cory:
I did. I did. I ran track, I wrestled, played soccer. Yeah, a lot of physical sports.
Mike:
Awesome. Yeah, I was a football player and also my kids are. They’re boys, are too. And there’s something about contact sports, isn’t it?
Cory:
Yeah, I still, I’ve got three boys at home, so we constantly are wrestling around the living room.
Mike:
How old are they?
Cory:
13, just turned 18, and 24.
Mike:
Okay. Do they all still like to swell up on each other a little bit?
Cory:
Oh, all the time.
Mike:
My wife only grew up with one brother, and so she didn’t know this. I grew up with five boys in our house and two girls, and the girls were on each end out of seven. I mean, it was just constant conflict. Not that you dislike each other, it’s just a pecking order thing.
Cory:
It is, it is.
Mike:
And then I had a lot of male cousins, so it was a pecking order there too, and they were all older than us and used to beat the hell out of us. One of those things. What do they joke to say? Crap grows downhill. Well, it does, but those younger ones get tough and they get tough mentally too.
Cory:
Oh, a hundred percent. Have to.
Mike:
And it’s funny to watch. So my two youngest out of five, they’re boys. My wife is like, “Is this stuff ever going to end because she sees them chest bump, somebody shoulder bumps somebody in the house, and then it’s just this little square-off game they do. And then she’s like… I go, “Honey, this is…” I mean, I’ve been saying this for quite a few years. It’s not like right now that I’m like, she’s finally gotten used to it, but this is normal. This is what you want to happen.
Cory:
I don’t know that it ever ends because I’m in my 40s and my oldest son and my middle son, not only do they constantly mess with and harass each other physically, but even, I mean, our oldest son was over the other day for Sunday breakfast, and I’m not paying any attention. I’m in the living room and all of a sudden I get lifted up and suplexed from behind. So I don’t know that… And our two sons are about the same size. They’re both a little bit smaller than me, but man, they are constantly fighting each other for physical superiority.
Mike:
That is awesome. Well, I get in those little shadowboxing situations and I told them, and I learned this a long time ago about myself. I have one button and it’s on, and I don’t know really how to play very well because I’m going to win. Right?
Cory:
Yeah.
Mike:
And it’s funny, because they’re like… One of them will get hurt or something like that and I said, “I didn’t start it, and I’ve told y’all before, I don’t play very well.”
Cory:
Hey, you poked the bear, man. That’s just how it works.
Mike:
Now listen, if they don’t listen to this, I mean they could probably all take me, but they don’t know that yet.
Cory:
Exactly. You got to maintain that mental top position. Even if you know they could-
Mike:
Oh man, I’m going to stray here. We’re not even talking what we’re supposed to talk about. This isn’t automotive at all, but this is better to listen to sometimes. So my son was going to college to play football and he was swelling up. He had been taking some proteins and stuff like that, just lifting the weights and everything. And he wants to arm wrestle. I dodged it as long as I could and I couldn’t dodge it anymore. So I get in this arm wrestling match, we get into one of those, like I’m talking multiple minutes still mates. But then you put that little twitch that happens in your head that you go, I don’t care if my arm breaks, I’m not losing.
Cory:
I’m going for it.
Mike:
I’m going, I’m going to hang on until it snaps. I don’t care. I outlasted him and I won. But I’m not kidding you, my arm hurt for three months. I iced it when he wasn’t around because I wasn’t going to show him that-
Cory:
No. No.
Mike:
And I told one of my best friends what had happened and he goes, “I got to tell you something.” He said, “That was a very important accomplishment that you made.” He goes, “Because you bought yourself more time as the alpha dog of the house.”
Cory:
At least a couple of years out of that.
Mike:
And so since then he’s asked to arm wrestle. I know he could beat me now. We’re going back four or five years now, and I’m in the 50s. I’m low 50s, but still. And I’m losing muscle mass, he’s gaining.
Cory:
I get it.
Mike:
I get it. The father time has taken over.
Cory:
Now you got to extend the mental game. You got to be like, “Hey, you don’t want to get embarrassed like last time, do you?”
Mike:
Right. “It really ticked you off,” because he’s college football. I still don’t know how I won other than I just outlasted, but I paid a dear price for it. I told my wife, I said, “This thing better get better sooner. I’m not going to see a doctor or something.” I mean, it was tender. You know that little tendon that you always talk about?
Cory:
Elbow?
Mike:
Arm wrestled… Anyway, so it’s a funny story, but yeah, I would lose in a heartbeat now. So I avoid the conversation or I just say, “Dude, listen, we squared that up a long time ago.” And I said, “I think I’ll just retire champ,” is what I tell him.
Cory:
I love it. I love it. Our middle son just graduated high school at 17 this last May, and he was a five-time state placer in wrestling. But I would go in and I’d wrestle with the middleweights and the kids are about my size all the time, but you get sore and you get tired fast, but you can’t show it to the kids because they think you’re some kind of Godzilla, which I am not. But I’d go in and just do my best to keep up with them for a few minutes, then pretend I wasn’t dying in the corner.
Mike:
Well, the greatest thing my dad ever did raising five boys was he never let the little dogs, or I call it little bulls, he never let the little bulls think they could control the house. He got milder. He just got softer when he got older. But he still was the alpha guy. Everybody knew it in the house. All the boys knew it. And my dad just had this attitude. He was fun-loving. We had a great time with my dad. He’s deceased now. But there were just lines that you didn’t cross and if you crossed them, oh, no. Every one of my brothers, including myself, went through that little age where, I think you’re like somewhere, some of them hit it at 14, some hit it at 15, some hit it at 16, where they’re going to challenge Dad.
Cory:
You got to test him, and then part of-
Mike:
It’s part of the hook.
Cory:
Yeah.
Mike:
And they’re going to get smart mouth. But my gosh, my dad never backed off that. It was almost like he knew it was coming and he was just like, “All right, got to deal with one more little stubborn,” whatever. And he did it though, and he got everyone through it without them thinking they’re going to, in other words, you got to put in your place, you’re not in charge. And then once you realize that life gets a little happier. But you’ve got to butt heads with the big bull. That’s just the way it goes.
Cory:
Yep.
Mike:
Well, let’s talk about tires and Point S. We’re at the Point S Conference 2025. And what a scene here, man, this is awesome.
Cory:
Yeah, there’s a lot of people here. This is great. Great venue too.
Mike:
Oh, man. So you’re first generation.
Cory:
I am.
Mike:
What in the world got you in the tire business? How’d you do it?
Cory:
Funny story. I was looking for a job and I liked cars. And this is me a few years out of high school. I had moved to Colorado to run track in college for a short time and decided college wasn’t for me a couple of years in. I moved back to South Dakota and I needed a job. I was pretty good with people. And I applied at what was a company-owned Bridgestone Firestone store. And I got a job in sales. I’ve always loved cars.
Mike:
Where was this?
Cory:
This is in Rapid City.
Mike:
Rapid City, okay.
Cory:
And it was a Tires Plus store, which is, they’re owned by corporate Bridgestone Firestone. And this is about 2002. And yeah, as first place I really did anything business or work-related that I excelled at because I liked it so much. About six months in, I was offered a store manager position because the store manager bailed and moved back to Minnesota. And so the DM called me and said, “Hey, you want the job?” I was the youngest guy in the shop, which was so weird. But I tell you what, that built my work ethic like crazy, because I figured out pretty quick you got all these guys, these technicians in their 30s and 40s, even our entire lube techs were older than I was. And I figured out quick that they didn’t want to listen to me because I was a young guy, and if I showed up before them and I left after them, if I outworked everybody, then they would listen to me. So that’s kind of what built my work ethic in this business and in adult life too, because I had to as a young man, to get everyone’s respect.
Mike:
That is a great story. You led by example because that’s all you could do. You didn’t sell yourself like, “Hey, you’re going to have to listen to me.” You just had to prove yourself.
Cory:
I tried the puffing your chest out and tried… That was just the best way to do it, was just to outwork everyone else.
Mike:
Actions speak louder than words.
Cory:
Absolutely.
Mike:
Man. And so I guess in running your own stores, it still holds true today.
Cory:
Yeah, it sure does. I worked with Bridgestone long enough to really understand and learn the business. I was very fortunate to have several mentors that had been doing it for 30-plus years, knew what they were doing, and I was lucky enough to learn from a lot of their mistakes so I didn’t make my own. And then in 2008, I left and bought a small four-man operation shop and just grew from there.
Mike:
That’s so cool. And now you’ve got two locations.
Cory:
Yep, two locations. On any given quarter, we probably got 35, 40 employees.
Mike:
And both your stores are called Cory’s Point S Tire and Auto?
Cory:
Correct.
Mike:
Okay. So when did you decide to be part of Point S in this process?
Cory:
That’s kind of an interesting story too. I came from, my dad’s a businessman. My grandpa’s a businessman. And my grandpa, I get a lot of wisdom from him. He’d always say stuff like, “Oh, if it sounds too good to be true, it is.” And I always live by that philosophy. When you start an independent shop, at least at the time, back in the early 2000s, you would get hit up by all these buying groups and the big tires of the world. And at the time, Tires Plus had franchises. There were a ton of them. You could buy a Midas franchise or whatever, and they all want a percentage of the pie, and that’s how franchises work. And I get it. But I was like, I know how to do this. I learned from older guys and I know the benchmarks. I know how to run a shop. So I didn’t really need a franchise.
Well, when these guys first approached me before they were Point S, they were called Tire Factory. He laid it out. This sort of friend of mine I knew from the industry named John, and he’s like, “Yeah, I got this great group and it’s member owned.” He didn’t explain that super well to me, but he’s talking about these great volume bonuses you get. And I’m like waiting for it to, where’s the turn? Where are you going to tell me this is going to cost me three grand a month or whatever? And it never came. And I was like, so I get all this, I get these volume bonuses. I get to be part of this group that owns real estate. And there seemed so many upsides and really no downsides. And I was like, this is a scam. I was like, “John, I like you. I respect you, but I’ll see you later.” I honestly did not believe, I was like, “I don’t know how you got caught up in this scam.”
Mike:
Look at you. Yeah.
Cory:
“What happened to you, man?” But he hit me up again six or eight months later. And so obviously the floor hadn’t fallen out at that point, and I decided to try it. And he said, “Try it for six months or a year, and if you don’t like it, you can always leave. It’s not like you’re putting 50 grand down or 100 grand down or something like that to be part of the group.” So I said, “Okay, you know what?”
Mike:
That’s reasonable.
Cory:
“That’s reasonable. I’ll try it.” And after the first six months or a year, I was like, this is legit. It’s a good group. I think my favorite part of it that I had missed when I was with corporate was the camaraderie when you get to go to meetings, you get to talk with other guys about similar problems you’ve got, what do you do about this? This is happening in the industry. And I kind of miss that. So that was my favorite part, not the money part. That was my favorite part of it.
Mike:
I mean, I would assume that’s just, if you had that once, like you did, especially with being in that corporate environment and then you don’t have it, you miss it.
Cory:
You do. You do. I missed the friendly competition. I miss all these guys over here and his store just hit 4 or $5 million. And I’m like, oh, man, it fires you up to do better. So yeah, I miss that. And I get that with this group, which is great.
Mike:
Well, and nobody competes in this group, of course.
Cory:
Yeah.
Mike:
And they do a good job of, I mean, granted, they want members, but they don’t want everybody.
Cory:
They’ve been pretty good. And our CEO, Walter, and the rest of the board of directors have all been really good about keeping, if somebody’s going to come into a community, say it’s 50 or 100,000 people, and there’s already a store there, they’re not going to put another one there without going to the current member and being like, “Hey, is this going to negatively affect your business? If it is, we won’t do it.” And so they do it on a case by case basis.
Mike:
That’s so cool. And you know what? I’ve heard that over and over to the point where you guys, you trust the leadership or Point S on that, and everybody seems to be, I mean, it seems like a brotherhood or a family, whatever you want to call it.
Cory:
It really is. And it’s great coming to a place like this where you can talk openly to a guy that is in your same position that deals with the same issues you do, and you don’t worry that you’re giving away any kind of industry secret or something else to the guy who competes with you across town, because you might be a little more guarded if you’re talking, you might respect the guy that competes with you across town, but that doesn’t mean you’re going to share all your cards.
Mike:
What I like is I love the branding that you guys have. I think it looks awesome, but I interviewed one of your associate members, Ryan Thueson, here at the show, he’s probably going to air a week earlier than you on the podcast. But one of the things I said to him is, “It’s cool because you’ve got this national brand, but yet you’re local with your name.” It’s still Cory’s, right?
Cory:
Yeah.
Mike:
And everybody knows Cory, but you’ve got this national presence that says, “Hey, we’re big enough to serve you, small enough to know you,” almost. It’s one of those like… That’s a banking cliche I know that some banks use or the small town banks in my area, but it fits though.
Cory:
Yeah, it does, because it’s local ownership, but national recognition.
Mike:
And it’s not like it’s not national ownership. That’s what people don’t realize, but even a potential, another member need to understand that they’re not getting ownership. You’re just utilizing a national name, gaining tons of benefits out of it from buying power to the fellowship you talk about, to the mentors, everything.
Cory:
Yeah. It’s pretty great. Kind of best of both worlds type of deal.
Mike:
If you had to tell somebody that’s sitting on the sidelines thinking about joining Point S, what’s your biggest why they should?
Cory:
I think I would say for the reasons we just mentioned.
Mike:
Kind of like what you said about your buddy calling you up.
Cory:
Yeah. Anybody who’s an independent, I really don’t see a downside. You’re not giving up your own name. My shop still has my name on it. You’re getting fantastic buying power. The deals these guys have with a group this size is awesome. For an independent shop and even a small chain, I really don’t see a downside to it.
Mike:
That’s awesome. Well, tell me a little bit about yourself on a personal level. I’ve got some notes here that you like car racing, snowboarding, motocross, mountain climbing.
Cory:
Yeah. That comes from when I was a younger man. I’ve always been kind of an adrenaline junkie, so I like racing anything fast, cars, motorcycles, snowmobiles. I like snowboarding and skiing. I climb a little bit. My wife doesn’t like that. She probably doesn’t like any of it if I was being honest.
Mike:
She probably sees those stories about those freelance climbers, what, they use the chalk on their hands.
Cory:
Yeah.
Mike:
You’ve seen some of those tragic ones that happened in the last five years.
Cory:
Yeah. I’m not quite that risky. Calculated risk is what I would call it. I’m more of a big mountain guy. I’ll go up Rainier or Mountain Hood or those type of mountains or Denali. But those are, I would say, a lot less risky than trying to free solo something because I’m not going without ice axes and ropes or whatever. A lot of people don’t know, but a lot of those are just a really hard hike. You do a little bit of ice climbing, but it’s not-
Mike:
Oh, I got.
Cory:
… as crazy.
Mike:
But it’s great exercise.
Cory:
For sure.
Mike:
I bet.
Cory:
Keep you young.
Mike:
Yeah. Good for the old ticker, right?
Cory:
Yeah, that’s right.
Mike:
You mentioned family here too. Tell us a little bit about your family. You’ve got, what, three sons, is that right?
Cory:
Yep. Three sons and two daughters. So I have five kids. I’m very fortunate that-
Mike:
You’re like me. I don’t know if I told you that.
Cory:
I think you said you had five kids too, right?
Mike:
Yeah, I got two daughters and three sons as well. My two daughters are on top and then three sons.
Cory:
Mine are in the middle, so I’ve got son, daughter, daughter, son, son.
Mike:
Okay. That’s cool.
Cory:
Pretty awesome. We were very fortunate because my oldest son had moved to Utah for a number of years, and he is now back. He just got married. And so him and his new life are living back in South Dakota. We’re very lucky. We get to have a Sunday breakfast with all five kids pretty much every week.
Mike:
Man.
Cory:
Man, that’s a dream.
Mike:
That is a dream. You get our age and you get to… I have one that lives away. I mean, she married a guy. And I should have made that part of the condition, they had to come back, but it didn’t work out. It’s okay. She’s in a good spot and the family is awesome. We love the in-laws. But for the most part, I still get the other ones home for Sunday night dinner.
Cory:
Awesome. Love it. That’s the best thing.
Mike:
It is. When they say “the king of the castle”, you feel like it right there, especially when your kids get older.
Cory:
A hundred percent. Now that’s a very neat feeling and a very neat being.
Mike:
And it’s great when you like this. I don’t just love them. I mean, I really like both my son-in-laws. They fit into our family and with their brother-in-laws, my sons, they all click. So they can all… It’s nice.
Cory:
I think my favorite part of that is seeing kind of the inter-family relationships, because if you take away one or two kids or you add a spouse or a girlfriend or something like that to one of your other kids, the dynamic kind of changes, the family dynamic, just a little bit. I love watching the inter-sibling relationships. Even without me and my wife there, just the way they act to each other, just slightly harass each other, but in a bad situation, they will all have each other’s back a hundred percent. I don’t have to worry about them, which is pretty awesome.
Mike:
That’s awesome. So we’ve got a grandchild now, and she was born almost two years ago, and you’re talking about changed the family dynamics, when she comes over, all eyes, all attention’s on her. I mean, it has changed our families in such an incredible way. I always heard people say about how great it is to be a grandparent, whatever, but it’s like, no, you don’t get it. I mean, I tell all the people that had told me before, I said, “You lied.” And they’re like, “What? You don’t like being a grandparent?” I said, “No, it’s way better than you said it was.” You can’t put words to it. Yeah, it’s awesome. But, man, I’ll tell you what, I can probably talk to you all day and-
Cory:
I feel like that too.
Mike:
Listen, I’m glad I got you here at the conference. I’m glad you did the podcast with me. It’s been great having you. We need to have you on again sometime.
Cory:
I would love to come back. This time just absolutely flew by.
Mike:
It did, and I’d love to make it to South Dakota one day.
Cory:
I’d love to have you.
Mike:
I think I’ve been to 40 states, so I’m like, it’s maybe 41, I need nine more or 10 more. South Dakota’s one of them.
Cory:
Well, if you haven’t been to the Dakotas, I mean, jeez-
Mike:
Been to North Dakota, so I flew over you.
Cory:
South Dakota in the summertime, summer or fall is absolutely beautiful. The Black Hills, the Badlands, Custer State Park, Crazy Horse, Mount Rushmore. I mean, there’s a ton that’s awesome.
Mike:
A ton. Well, I got to tell you, thank you very much. It’s been a pleasure.
Cory:
It’s been my pleasure, really.
Mike:
To all our guests out there, thank you for being part of the podcast. You guys make this thing work and couldn’t do it without you. If you have a guest recommendation for me, please email me at [email protected]. Till next time, be safe. Have a great day. Thank you.
To all our listeners out there, thank you so much for being part of the podcast. We are grateful for you. If you’d like to recommend a guest to me, please email me at [email protected]. Till next time, be safe and have a great day.
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