Atlanta-based Kauffman Tire landing in Midland area of Columbus
The Columbus tire and auto repair market is poised to become more crowded with Atlanta-based Kauffman Tire headed to the Midland area of the city.
Two city building permits dated April 22 and June 8 show the company is in the process of setting up a 7,394-square-foot location at 7049 Ruffie Way, which is in the vicinity of the Starbucks and Zaxby’s outlets fronting the Lakeside Village complex just off U.S. Highway 80. The April permit is valued at $760,000 in construction, with P.R.O. Building Systems doing the work, with the June permit showing Amber Fire Protection handling part of the project at a value of $20,000.
“We should be open by the end of October,” Allen Battista, Kauffman’s vice president of retail operations, said Tuesday. “As for additional stores in the market, there’s always the possibility of a second store, but that’s yet to be determined.”
Kauffman, according to its website, dates to its 1936 founding by Harry and Eva Kauffman in Wooster, Ohio. Their son, John, relocated the headquarters to Atlanta in 1975 and the family-owned independent chain has grown from there. The company opened a 175,000-square-foot distribution center, corporate office and training facility in 1975.
Kauffman Tire today has more than 55 stores in Georgia and Florida, with 14 distribution centers in seven states. That includes a recently opened store in Macon, Ga. It also operates the website Tread Depot. The business employs more than 800 people, its website says.
The company’s competition in the Columbus area includes a plethora of independent shops, along with the usual chains that include Firestone, Pep Boys, Tire Engineers and auto centers operated by Wal-Mart and Sears.
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This story was originally published June 28, 2016 at 2:58 PM with the headline "Atlanta-based Kauffman Tire landing in Midland area of Columbus."