Tire business talk with shop-floor memory.
Gain Traction treats the tire and auto-repair world as a working community, not a business case study. Mike Edge talks with shop owners, operators, editors, coaches, and industry executives about growth, trust, distribution, and the daily realities behind the counter.
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Gain Traction is a business show rooted squarely in the tire and auto repair world. It has the feel of an industry conversation held between people who already know the trade, but still want the full story. Mike Edge usually starts with a practical opening and then lets the guest talk. That patience matters. Episodes often spend real time on how someone arrived in the business before they get to the headline lesson about growth, management, or strategy. A conversation with an operator can turn from technical pride into a discussion of customer trust. A story about trying to buy a business can lead into corporate ownership, private equity, and the risk of consolidation. A shop owner’s family history can become a way to understand why a local brand lasts for decades. The show is comfortable with that kind of path. It does not strip out the handshakes, side comments, conference chatter, or lived-in shop details that make the automotive aftermarket feel like a relationship network. The recurring subjects are concrete: multi-location growth, road service expansion, peer groups, right to repair, tire distribution, value brands, fleet tire costs, and the emotional work of serving customers who arrive guarded. Guests bring different views of the same ecosystem, from Eddie Butler, Owner of Butler Automotive, to Matt Gibbons, sales director for Ozarko Tire Centers, Tony Gonzalez on Cosmo Tires and distribution, and John Careys, executive director for Automotive Aftermarket Charitable Foundation. The result is not a generic small-business podcast with automotive examples pasted in. It is trade-specific, conversational, and often admiring of people who build durable businesses from service bays, counters, warehouses, and regional reputations. Gain Traction is strongest when it turns shop-owner reality into a broader lesson without losing the smell of the garage. It gives independent operators, dealers, and industry partners a place to hear how others handle scale, culture, trust, and market pressure. The pacing is measured, with room for origin stories and practical detours. The payoff is a grounded picture of an industry where growth still depends on credibility, persistence, and knowing the people across the table.
Made for: For tire dealers, auto repair shop owners, operators, coaches, supplier partners, and aftermarket professionals who want grounded conversations about growth and reputation. It also suits business listeners interested in how independent automotive companies scale without losing their local character.
What sets it apart: Gain Traction stands out by treating automotive repair as a relationship business first and a growth business second. Its interviews stay close to the realities of customers, service bays, distribution, peer groups, and multi-location pressure.
The Gain Traction Podcast features top tire and auto repair professionals, shop owners, industry executives, and thought leaders.
Based on 4 episodes we listened to · September 2026
Gain Traction brings practical business scrutiny to the operating choices, workforce questions, and customer relationships behind tire and auto repair shops.
Gain Traction turns the business of tires and auto repair into shop-floor conversation. Host Mike Edge interviews owners, operators, and industry leaders about decisions with direct commercial consequences, from scaling multiple locations to earning a wary customer's trust.
Fixing the car brings pride; earning your wary customer's trust is the harder conversation.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
Scaling a shop starts with trust.
Phil Carpenter treats the move from technician work to operations as more than a title change. The point is not just solving the problems no one else could crack, but helping a guarded customer feel respected while the repair gets done.
A plainspoken shop-growth story that leaves the ownership pressure in place.
Gain Traction keeps things plainspoken, following Adam Dickerson as he talks through trying to buy Herb's Garage, missing on the numbers, and then taking a different route through a corporate road-service expansion.
A practical tire-industry conversation about value, distribution, and avoiding price-only competition.
Tony Gonzalez ties his Cuban exile framing to a grounded look at Cosmo Tires, distribution control, wholesale coverage, and the work of getting a warehouse ready.
A tire-business conversation that keeps returning to the people doing the work.
Tony Obilevich and Mike Edge spend the episode on a simple but useful question: what keeps a tire shop working well. The answer, at least here, is people.
SEMA-floor talk about networking, next-gen talent, and the practical business of staying connected.
Gain Traction's SEMA 2025 roundup keeps its focus on how this industry actually works: through relationships, repeat meetings, and the planning that happens between shows.
Real talk for veterinary practice leaders.
Sales systems for serious electrical contractors.
Trust is the hard part.
Mike Edge talks with Adam Dickerson, director of operations for Herb's Garage with four locations in the Cincinnati area, including Northern Kentucky.
This episode discusses the potential loss of repair rights for independent automotive shops, featuring an interview with David Manning, Managing Editor at Tire Business.
This episode features an interview with Nick Fletcher, a former auto shop owner turned coach with Elite Worldwide, discussing how peer groups help auto shop owners grow their businesses.
This episode features an interview with Matt Gibbons, sales director for Ozarko Tire Centers, discussing whether cheap truck tires actually cost fleets more money in the long run.
Host Mike Edge interviews Eddie Butler, owner of Butler Automotive, about his background and business in the tire and auto repair industry.
Host Mike Edge interviews John Careys, executive director of the Automotive Aftermarket Charitable Foundation, discussing the foundation's work and industry insights.
Mike Edge opens by framing exile, immigration, and the Cuban experience before bringing Tony Gonzalez into the conversation.
An interview with Mitch Brunel, president of retail at Gills Point Us, discussing his role and the benefits of joining a cooperative in the tire industry.
Host Mike Edge interviews Eric Raber, owner of ER Auto Care, discussing his background and journey in the automotive repair industry.
Host Mike Edge interviews Brian Call, a team advisor from Cheryl Tire and Service, discussing his background and entry into the tire and auto repair industry.
Mike Edge sits down with Tony Obilevich for a year in review conversation about the tire business.
Mike is on the SEMA show floor in the Tire Business booth, talking with guests as the day goes along.
Host Mike Edge interviews Philip Kane, CEO of Turbo Tires, about his journey in the tire industry and building a tire brand.
Host Mike Edge interviews auto repair shop owner Chris Cuvier about his business and industry insights.
Host Mike Edge interviews Josh Parnell about leadership and employee engagement in the tire and auto repair industry.
An interview with Kamar Johnson, president and CEO of GTT Commercial Tires, discussing the tire and auto repair industry.
Interview with Tyler Paparello, COO of AMG, discussing his transition from sales to leadership in the tire and auto repair industry.
Host Mike Edge interviews Christian Seen, CEO of Good Turn Tire and Auto, about scaling a multi-brand tire and auto repair business while preserving local legacy.
Host Mike Edge interviews retired Tire Business editor Bruce Davis about the history and development of the tire industry.
Interview with Don Barnes III of Bell Tire discussing the company's 103-year history and transformation.
Interview with Adrian Rodriguez, VP of Marketing and Retail Sales at Commercial Tire, discussing his career path and the tire industry.
Host Mike Edge interviews Joe Schaffernack about PPC digital marketing for multi-location tire and auto repair shops.
An interview with Dan Kahn, founder of Kahn Media, discussing his career in automotive PR and marketing, and his book 'The New Rules of the Road'.
A roundtable discussion with leaders of the Independent Tire Dealers Group's Next Gen Committee about their experiences in the tire and auto repair industry.
Host Mike Edge interviews Joe Tamarchio Jr.
This episode features Steven and Susan Moss, owners of Wilson Tire Pros and Automotive, discussing their journey as a family business in the tire and auto repair industry.
This episode features an interview with Rob Howden, Director of Business Development for USF Pro Racing, discussing his career in motorsports journalism and announcing, and the connection between racing and the auto repair industry.
This episode features an interview with Logan Leslie, founder and CEO of Main Street Auto, discussing how to build and maintain company culture while rapidly scaling a business in the automotive sector.
This episode features an interview with Mike Spagnola, president and CEO of SEMA, discussing how the organization supports tire shops and small businesses in the automotive industry.
This episode features an interview with Nathan Rhodes, owner of Total Automotive, discussing his transition from food service to automotive repair shop ownership in Chattanooga.
Host Mike Edge interviews Roy Littlefield IV about right to repair legislation and the tire industry.