NEW ORLEANS — Sun Auto Tire & Service Inc. has struck a deal to buy Delta World Tire, the New Orleans-based family-owned dealership with 17 stores in Louisiana and Mississippi.
The deal extends Sun Auto Tire's reach further across the Gulf Coast and will put the Phoenix-based company close to 325 retail outlets in 17 states.
Founded in 1938 by Abe Bernstein, Delta World Tire has 185 service bays among its nine stores in Louisiana and eight in Mississippi. The dealership was up to now still in the hands of the Bernstein family, with fourth generation family member Paul Bernstein at the helm.
The Delta World Tire announcement comes just three weeks after Sun Auto Tire disclosed plans to purchase Plaza Tire Service.
Purchasing Delta World provides Sun Auto the opportunity to bring its brand awareness to the Gulf Coast, an area Sun Auto CEO Tony Puckett called a "vibrant region with loyal customers."
"The community bonds Delta World Tire has created over the past 80 years extend for generations, and we look forward to fostering these relationships for years to come," Mr. Puckett said.
Sun Tire did not disclose the value of the deal nor Delta World Tire's revenue potential. The deal will solidify Sun Auto Tire's rank as the seventh-largest independent tire dealership in the U.S., based on number of outlets.
Delta World's stores are in Houma, Kenner, Lafayette (two stores), Lake Charles (two stores), Metarie, New Iberia, and New Orleans, La.; and Biloxi (two stores), Gulfport (two stores), Hattiesburg, Pascagoula, Picayune and Waveland, Miss.
The dealership's newest store is in Biloxi, which opened in 2019.
The entire Bernstein clan — current President Paul Bernstein, his father Marvin Bernstein and grandfather Abe Bernstein — are members of the Louisiana Independent Tire Dealers Association Hall of Fame.
