PITTSBURGH—Liberty Tire Recycling is continuing its run of industry acquisitions by purchasing Empire Tire of Edgewater and McGee Tire in Florida. Terms of the acquisitions, revealed Jan. 5, were not disclosed.
Liberty Tire expands Florida reach with acquisitions
Together, both companies will expand Liberty's reach into Florida by improving operational and route operation efficiency, said Liberty Tire Recycling CEO Thomas Womble. Empire Tire of Edgewater is the largest Orlando-area scrap tire collector and McGee Tire is an Orlando-area route collection business.
The acquisitions also will allow Liberty to more effectively service clients in Florida with collections, processing and general end-of-life tire recycling. They position Liberty to handle additional collections, and processing capacity in the rapidly growing Florida market and more efficiently move end-of-life tire materials into higher value markets.
Both Empire Tire and McGee Tire have worked as suppliers or service providers with Liberty Tire for more than a decade, Womble said. Management at both organizations was willing to exit the business and found a willing partner in the Pittsburgh-based tire recycler.
"They understand the Liberty culture and approached us," Womble said. "One of the things that we look for in (an acquisition) partner is that they do a couple of things really well. Both of these businesses fit that (criteria). We value that in a transaction."

Among the reasons Liberty typically pursues an acquisition includes awareness of a smaller company that provides great customer service, manufactures products efficiently, has developed efficient route operations, brings innovative research and development ideas to forefront, and/or are "in tune" with how they manage employees, Womble said. He is confident these acquisitions will help Liberty further increase market share in the Southeast as well."
"We expect world-class service and end-of-life recycle management and we get that here," Womble said. "We made the acquisitions because of the people working there."
The addition of Empire Tire of Edgewater and McGee Tire will add approximately 75 combined new employees to the Liberty Tire work force, which numbers more than 2,300 throughout North America.
"My brother and I worked hard for over 20 years in this business. We'd worked with Liberty in the past and knew them to be good operators, but what really impressed me was their commitment to their employees," Jesse McGee, founder of McGee Tire, said in a statement. "They really care about the people like we do."
The current facilities will remain in place and be rebranded under the Liberty name. "It's an addition, not a consolidation," Womble said. "(The facilities) will continue to run as normal."
Liberty continues to be in the market for strategic acquisitions and will actively pursue targets that support clients and growth. The focus of those acquisitions, however, has shifted over the last few years to involve sustainability, Womble said. Now Liberty's clients are looking for the company to not just collect and remove scrap tires safely from their facilities, but to ensure that removal won't result in long-term environmental or legal risks. Customers, company boards, executives and legal counsel have a "higher set of sustainability" expectation for end-of-life tire removal, Womble said.
He referenced strategies such as new processing tactics, elimination of total miles driven and molded manufacturing processes as ways to execute such promises. "Our business was ESG before it became a buzz word," Womble said. "It's about sustainability and moving rubber up the food chain."
Liberty's acquisitions position it to handle additional collections, and processing capacity in the rapidly growing Central Florida market, where the population is growing at more than 25 percent each decade, according to U.S. Census data. The company collects tires from 36,700 retail locations across North America and manufactures more than 100 products sold in North America at more than 10,000 retail and commercial locations, including several major home improvement retailers, according to Liberty's website.
In an unrelated move, Liberty also announced the hiring in early January of Andrew Meurer as president and chief commercial officer. Meurer joins Liberty after more than 12 years at Michelin, most recently as vice president of sales for the North American Passenger Tire Division. He also held leadership roles at Procter and Gamble and Kimberly-Clark.
Meurer will spearhead Liberty's efforts to collaborate with tire manufacturers and tire retailers to expand existing and design new sustainable end-of-life solutions for tires.
"Andrew's manufacturing experience provides us with great perspective to help us align with our goals," Womble said. "He can help make (processes) from the cradle to the grave more efficient. He'll help us see it through a new lens so we can be better aligned and our (divisions) can pull in the same direction."
One of Meurer's directives is to help Liberty meet its goal of zero waste through collaboration with customers and industry partners.
"End of life tires are a big challenge. Tires today are safer and last longer than ever before, but that makes them even more difficult to recycle," Meurer said in a statement. "I'm excited to work with Liberty and the team at Energy Capital Partners to transform tire recycling so we can better meet the needs of the entire value chain."
SIGN UP FOR NEWSLETTERS
Rubber News wants to hear from its readers. If you want to express your opinion on a story or issue, email your letter to Editor Bruce Meyer at [email protected].