Auto fintech CEO went from homeless to Inc. 5000

Online tire and wheel retailer, Tire Agent, made the Inc. 5000 List last month for the second year in a row, for being one of the fastest-growing private companies in the U.S., with a current valuation of over $130M and more than 1 Million tires sold through its online platform since 2020. For Tire Agent’s Founder and CEO, Jared Kugel, hitting these milestones is especially sweet.

Tire Agent’s Founder and CEO, Jared Kugel

When Jared left his family’s brick-and-mortar tire wholesale business in 2018 to make his own mark in the industry he grew up in, he never could have anticipated how his journey would unfold.

Less than five years ago, Kugel was fighting to keep his startup afloat and found himself out of money and on the verge of homelessness. “I was living on crackers and jelly, going into the minus month after month, racking up debt, and I found out that my apartment was being foreclosed on. I can remember getting that foreclosure letter, and I really had nowhere to go.” Around this same time, his former girlfriend left him, and there were many days he felt like giving up.

Kugel lost his apartment and he was selling off furniture and other items to survive when help came in the form of a group of individual investors.

They got wind of Tire Agent’s business model, combining online tire and wheel sales with inclusive affordability, a proprietary credit engine, mobile on-site installation for its customers, and extra measures for consumer purchase protection.

It was early in 2020, and they believed in his vision of making safe and reliable tires and remote tire installation affordable and easily accessible for Americans of all budgets and credit categories, along with the company’s tire-centric culture (think Chewy for tire consumers). Early investors pooled their money together to raise $700K for the struggling entrepreneur, which kept the company operating until Kugel was able to eventually negotiate a $5 Million Series A round of funding which closed just before the pandemic locked down the world.

The years 2020 and 2021 were pivotal in bringing the company to where it is today.  Tire Agent then went on to raise another $7 Million Series B funding, further accelerating its market share in the online tire retail space, as they perfected their model of providing access to safe, reliable, and affordable tires and wheels to all Americans; regardless of location, income, or credit.

Tire Agent’s Founder and CEO, Jared Kugel

“Our value proposition,” says Kugel, “is our superior selection of more than 70 trusted tire and wheel brands to fit every budget and lifestyle, our wide variety of payment options for all credit types and incomes through our paypair engine, our knowledge of tires, and unparalleled customer service.”

He and his team also work to ensure fast and free shipping and comprehensive tire protection plans for customers. Additionally, Tire Agent is an authorized retailer for many of the name-brand tires and wheels customers know and trust

He credits Tire Agent’s 628% growth with putting the customer’s needs at the center of Tire Agent’s culture. “Making the customer the center of our business is what has led to our continued growth. We are constantly giving the customers what they are asking for. We read every customer review and we listen to their needs; from product and service offerings to ease of use and payment options, and we implement those changes seamlessly.”

Next on Tire Agent’s agenda is an A.I. project that’s in the works, to more precisely match each customer with the right set of tires, based on criteria that are typically overlooked by both customers and traditional brick-and-mortar salespeople.

A far cry from its darker bootstrapped days, Tire Agent, surpassed the $130 Million valuation mark, with annual sales revenue hitting $150 Million, making his shares worth an estimated $35 Million.  Kugel says he is continuously fielding offers from eager investors who want in on Tire Agent, but he is not in any rush to sell his stake in the company.

“I love what I do, and I love making tires and wheels affordable, accessible and convenient for people.”

Recent data supports Tire Agent’s growth. According to a 2023 article titled, How Online Tire Sales Are Driving Innovation In The Automotive Industry, “In the U.S. market, in 2017, about 10% of drivers said they had purchased tires online. Just a few short years later, in 2022, 29% of consumers said they had made the move to purchasing tires online.”

Looking back on his days of losing his apartment, heartbreak, and nearly folding on his startup dreams, Jared Kugel just purchased his parents a new home and car and recently got engaged to his fiancée, Cris.  He now mentors other fledgling startup founders in his free time, counseling them on how to avoid common pitfalls.