Tire Business
U.S. industry trade (tire and automotive service sector)
Background
Tire Business was launched in April 1983 as a spin-off of Rubber & Plastics News, another Crain Communications trade title, with Ernie Zielasko as its founding editor and publisher. It was headquartered in Akron, Ohio, the traditional center of the U.S. rubber and tire industry. From the start, the publication targeted independent tire dealers and others in the tire and automotive service industries and automotive aftermarket. It has always been part of Crain Communications, a family-owned publishing company founded by G.D. Crain in 1916; in 2017, Keith Crain bought out his brother Rance Crain's stake, consolidating ownership within one branch of the family. The outlet publishes every other Monday in print and updates news daily online, reaching more than 30,000 print subscribers. It compiles annual rankings of top tire dealers and manufacturers and tracks North American and global tire market statistics. As a specialized B2B trade publication, it does not take broad political positions, but its editorial page has been willing to criticize specific policies — including Trump administration tariffs — when editors judge them harmful to the tire industry.
Sources
- Tire Business — Crain Communications brand page
- About Us — Tire Business
- Crain Communications — Wikipedia
- Crain Communications changes family ownership structure (2017)
- Trump's tariffs impacting wrong people in tire industry — Tire Business editorial
- Editorial: Trump tariffs clear as mud to tire industry — Tire Business
- Editorial: How will tariffs affect U.S. tire industry? — Tire Business
Profile compiled 2026-07-29; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.