National Tire and Battery

National Tire and Battery, commonly known as NTB, is an American brand of tire retailers and automotive service centers. Its business combines tire sales with routine vehicle maintenance and repair, including battery replacement, fluid services, brake work, steering and suspension services, windshield wiper replacement, and vehicle inspections. The brand was created by Sears in 1997 as a consolidated identity for two tire businesses that Sears had acquired several years earlier: Tire America and National Tire Warehouse. The name also incorporated the letter “B” to signal the inclusion of battery products associated with Sears’s DieHard brand. Sears acquired Tire America and National Tire Warehouse in 1988 through its purchase of their parent company, Western Auto Supply. For several years, the businesses retained their separate identities. Sears subsequently combined them under the National Tire and Battery name, creating a specialist automotive-service chain that was distinct from Sears-branded retail stores. This positioning allowed the chain to focus on tires and vehicle service rather than operate primarily as an automotive department within a broader department-store network. In 2003, Sears sold the NTB business to TBC Corporation. At the time of the transaction, the chain had 226 stores. Sears described the separate branding and the distance between many NTB sites and Sears retail locations as reasons that TBC was better positioned to develop the business. The sale moved NTB into a multi-brand tire and service portfolio that also included Tire Kingdom, Merchant’s Tire and Auto Centers, and Big O Tires. TBC’s network collectively operated more than 1,200 locations across numerous U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and parts of Canada, although those figures covered the broader portfolio rather than NTB alone. NTB’s operating model centers on locally accessible automotive maintenance. Its service menu includes oil changes and other fluid exchanges, batteries, brakes, tires, wiper blades, steering and suspension work, and inspections. This gives the brand a role between a tire specialist and a general repair chain: tires and batteries remain central to its identity, while recurring maintenance and repair services provide additional customer visits and revenue opportunities. In February 2020, TBC agreed to sell 112 NTB Tire & Service Centers to Mavis Discount Tire. The locations were in the Philadelphia, Boston, Atlanta, and Chicago areas. The transaction was presented as a consolidation of the companies’ geographic footprints. After the sale, approximately 512 NTB locations remained under TBC ownership, while Mavis assumed control of the transferred stores. A separate account of the transaction states that the remaining TBC network included 615 locations operating under the Tire Kingdom and NTB brands. The differing figures reflect different scopes or points of measurement, so they should not be treated as directly interchangeable. NTB is therefore best understood as an active U.S. automotive aftermarket brand within TBC Corporation’s portfolio. Its history has been shaped by Sears’s original consolidation strategy, the 2003 divestiture to TBC, and the 2020 transfer of a regional group of locations to Mavis. Publicly available reference material does not establish a separate publicly traded listing, a current chief executive specifically for the NTB brand, or a standalone corporate headquarters.

National Tire and Battery traces its origins to two tire businesses acquired by Sears in 1988. Sears obtained Tire America and National Tire Warehouse when it purchased their parent company, Western Auto Supply. The businesses initially operated under their existing identities. In 1997, Sears consolidated them into a single chain called National Tire and Battery, or NTB. The name reflected the chain’s tire business and its battery offering, including the association with Sears’s DieHard battery brand. The new brand was primarily deployed through dedicated automotive-service stores rather than Sears department stores. Its services extended beyond tire retailing to include battery replacement, oil changes, fluid exchanges, brake work, inspections, and other common maintenance and repair services. This created a specialist automotive format within the broader Sears corporate portfolio. Sears sold NTB to TBC Corporation in 2003. The chain had 226 stores at the time. Sears’s stated rationale was that NTB’s separate identity and the lack of close proximity between many of its locations and Sears retail operations limited Sears’s ability to develop the business, while TBC’s specialist tire-service platform offered a better growth fit. Contemporary reporting cited approximately $425 million in NTB revenue and $60 million in profit for 2002; these figures describe the business before the sale and are not current financial data. Under TBC, NTB became part of a broader multi-brand automotive-service group that included Tire Kingdom, Merchant’s Tire and Auto Centers, and Big O Tires. TBC’s combined brands operated a large network across the United States, the District of Columbia, and selected Canadian provinces. NTB retained its own brand identity while sharing the strategic context of TBC’s tire and service portfolio. In February 2020, TBC agreed to sell 112 NTB Tire & Service Centers to Mavis Discount Tire. The stores were located in the Philadelphia, Boston, Atlanta, and Chicago markets. The transaction was described as a way for the companies to consolidate their geographic footprints. Reference material reported that approximately 512 NTB locations remained under TBC ownership after the transaction; another account stated that TBC retained 615 locations under the Tire Kingdom and NTB brands, a broader or differently measured figure. NTB’s documented service categories include oil changes, brake-fluid exchange, coolant exchange, transmission-fluid exchange, battery services, wiper blades, brake services, steering and suspension services, and vehicle inspections. The brand consequently operates as both a tire retailer and a general automotive-maintenance provider. Public reference material does not identify a separately listed NTB company, a current standalone brand executive, or a confirmed independent headquarters.

• 2020

  112 locations are transferred to Mavis Discount Tire

  [1]National Tire and Batteryen.wikipedia.org

  TBC agreed to sell 112 NTB centers in four major U.S. market areas to Mavis Discount Tire.

• 2003

  NTB is sold to TBC Corporation

  [1]National Tire and Batteryen.wikipedia.org

  Sears divested the 226-store chain to TBC Corporation, which added it to a portfolio of tire and automotive-service brands.

• 1997

  National Tire and Battery brand is created

  [1]National Tire and Batteryen.wikipedia.org

  Sears combined Tire America and National Tire Warehouse under the National Tire and Battery name, adding a battery reference to the consolidated identity.

• 1988

  Sears acquires the predecessor tire businesses

  [1]National Tire and Batteryen.wikipedia.org

  Through its acquisition of Western Auto Supply, Sears acquired Tire America and National Tire Warehouse, the businesses later consolidated into NTB.

A convenient U.S. tire and automotive-service chain offering tires, batteries, preventive maintenance, and common vehicle repairs through dedicated service centers.

• Tires · 1997

  Automotive tires

  Tires are the core retail category associated with NTB. The chain’s dedicated service-center format supports tire sales, fitting, replacement, and related vehicle service. The available reference material does not identify specific tire manufacturers, proprietary tire lines, or exclusive models sold under the NTB name.

• Batteries · 1997

  Automotive batteries

  Battery sales and battery-related service are represented in the NTB name and form one of the chain’s documented service categories. The brand’s battery positioning was linked historically to Sears’s DieHard battery business, although the supplied sources do not establish a current exclusive battery brand relationship.

• Maintenance services

  Fluid services

  NTB provides routine fluid-related maintenance, including oil changes, brake-fluid exchange, coolant exchange, and transmission-fluid exchange. These services complement tire and battery work and support the chain’s broader positioning as a general automotive-maintenance provider.

• Repair services

  Brake, steering, and suspension services

  The documented repair offering includes brake services as well as steering and suspension services. These categories extend NTB beyond tire replacement into common mechanical maintenance and repair work performed at its service centers.

• Maintenance services

  Wiper blades and vehicle inspections

  NTB also offers windshield wiper blades and vehicle inspections. The sources do not provide a detailed description of inspection rules, coverage, or product specifications, but list both among the chain’s service categories.

• 2020

  TBC transfers 112 NTB centers to Mavis Discount TireM&A

  Background

  TBC and Mavis sought to consolidate their geographic footprints across several U.S. metropolitan markets.

  Action taken

  TBC agreed to sell 112 NTB Tire & Service Centers in the Philadelphia, Boston, Atlanta, and Chicago areas to Mavis Discount Tire.

  Aftermath

  Approximately 512 NTB locations were reported to remain under TBC ownership, while another reported figure counted 615 locations under the broader Tire Kingdom and NTB brands.

  Source

• 2003

  Sears divests NTB to TBC CorporationM&A

  Background

  Sears owned a separately branded 226-store tire and service chain but considered TBC better positioned to develop the business because NTB locations were not closely connected to Sears retail operations.

  Action taken

  Sears sold National Tire and Battery to TBC Corporation.

  Aftermath

  NTB became part of TBC’s multi-brand tire and automotive-service portfolio, alongside brands such as Tire Kingdom, Merchant’s Tire and Auto Centers, and Big O Tires.

  Revenue and profit. $425 million revenue; $60 million profit (2002, before the 2003 sale)

  Source

• 2020

  TBC agrees to sell 112 NTB service centers to Mavis Discount Tire[1]National Tire and Batteryen.wikipedia.org

  M&A

  TBC entered an agreement to transfer 112 NTB Tire & Service Centers in the Philadelphia, Boston, Atlanta, and Chicago areas to Mavis Discount Tire as part of a geographic footprint-consolidation plan.

• 2003

  Sears sells National Tire and Battery to TBC Corporation[1]National Tire and Batteryen.wikipedia.org

  M&A

  Sears divested the NTB chain, then consisting of 226 stores, to TBC Corporation. Sears indicated that TBC was better positioned to grow a separately branded chain that was not closely integrated with Sears retail locations.

1. 1National Tire and Batteryen.wikipedia.org