Celebrating a century!
Here's to 100 years of getting folks safely back on the road fast and affordably. Thank you to all of our loyal customers and employees that have traveled on this amazing journey with us.
Here's to 100 years of getting folks safely back on the road fast and affordably. Thank you to all of our loyal customers and employees that have traveled on this amazing journey with us.
1922
Belle Tire was founded in 1922 by Sam Waze with the first location on Grand River Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. Sam named his business after his wife, Belle. Sam and Belle's son, Herb Waze, worked with his father and later took over the family business.
60's & 70's
In the 1960s, Don Barnes Sr., a Kelly Tire salesman, decided to no longer sell tires to Belle Tire and he partnered with Waze instead. On April 1, 1970, the Barnes family was officially in the tire business. The new partnership proved to be successful with several Michigan locations opening over the following two decades including Roseville, West Bloomfield, Troy and Traverse City.
80's & 90's
Around 1984, the Barnes family bought Waze's shares and continued expansion of the business through acquisitions of American Tire, Delta Tire, Great Lakes Tire and Elkin Tire followed by the acquisition of Tireman and Metro 25 in the 1990s. By 1997 we had 45 locations and 650 employees.
1997
The Barnes family has always had a passion for hockey. So, in 1997, they formed the Belle Tire Hockey Club. This program helps youths develop life skills both on and off the ice. This program has seen its alumni succeed at the collegiate and professional levels. Current NHL players from Belle Tire Hockey Club include: Dylan Larkin (Red Wings), Alex Nedelijokovic (Red Wings), Zach Werenski (Columbus Blue Jackets), Kyle Connor (Winnipeg Jets) & Brendan Perlini (Edmonton Oilers).
The Belle Tire Girl
Leila Sbitani earned that nickname from 1997-2004. She served as a brand ambassador and starred in more than 80 commercials. She went on to host the popular Hi-Jinks for Nick at Nite, Best Night In for TV land and has starred in numerous films.
2003
We expanded into northern Ohio with 3 stores in the Toledo area. This was our first expansion outside of Michigan. Onward and upward!
2006
With the number of stores growing by the month, we needed more space for our inventory and people. We moved into a new headquarters in Allen Park, complete with a Distribution & Fulfillment Center that continues to service our growing footprint.
2007
In 2007, we added glass repair & replacement to our list of auto services, eventually becoming the largest windshield replacement and repair company in Michigan.
2008-2014
We continued growing in our home state, opening 4-5 stores across Michigan every year for the next 6 years.
2015
We expanded our retail footprint to Indiana with locations in South Bend, Mishawaka and Elkhart. We followed by opening stores in Muncie and 3 locations in Fort Wayne. Shortly after, we opened our 100th location in Kokomo in July 2018.
2016-2020
We began a large expansion into the Indianapolis region, opening 30 more locations and a state-of-the-art training facility at our Whitestown location.
2021
Late in 2021 we began building in Illinois where we opened 4 locations; Naperville, Villa Park, Joliet and Shorewood. In 2022, we will continue to expand in the suburbs of Chicago, opening 50 stores over the next 4 years.
Sports Partnerships
- Detroit Tigers
This is our oldest partnership to date. We love our Detroit Tigers.
- Detroit Red Wings
We have been a pround sponsor of the Detroit Red wings since 1998.
- Indiana Pacers
Our partnership wth the Indiana Pacers started during the 2019-2020 season.
- Chicago Blackhawks
Our newest partnership started in 2021, becoming the helmet sponsor as well as the Official Tire Retailer for the Chicago Blackhawks.