PEORIA, Ill. — Community Wholesale Tire Inc. has opened a fourth warehouse, a 77,000-sq.-ft. facility in Peoria, that will the company said will allow it "to better service our existing northern and central Illinois and Iowa customers and expand our overall marketing area."
According to company President Andy Berra, Community Wholesale Tire purchased the building from LexesNexis Group and made "significant upgrades" to the warehouse, including electricity, lighting and fire systems prior to opening of the facility in early December.
Total cost of the investment is $3.2 million.
Family-owned Community Wholesale, which operates three warehouses in Missouri (Kansas City, Springfield and St. Louis), now has nearly 600,000 combined square feet of warehouse space.
Community Wholesale distributes tires to 3,500 tire dealers in Missouri, Iowa, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Nebraska, Arkansas and Oklahoma, offering an inventory of more than $30 million.
The facility will have 15 employees, including 12 new hires. The general manager of the warehouse, Eric Haas, was relocated to run the facility from Community Wholesale's St. Louis headquarters. Two other employees also were relocated to the new space.
According to Community Wholesale, it has more than 200 employees, with the average length of employment more than eight years. Twenty employees have been with the company for 20 years, and five for 40 or more years.
Community Wholesale said it "is committed to excellent customer service for every dealer, big or small," and it offers a wide selection of tire brands, a proprietary online ordering system and a "no hassle" warranty and return policy.
Among Community Wholesale's retail dealers is the Independent Tire Dealers (ITD) buying group. For further information please visit itdroll.com or communitytire.com.