A born trader, Cape Girardeau businessman Vernon "Pee Wee" Rhodes transformed a broken-down car wash business into a successful tire service business in the 1960s.

The Tri-State Advertising and Marketing Professionals honored the founder of the Cape Girardeau-based Plaza Tire Service with the Triumph Award at a luncheon Tuesday at Drury Lodge.

The annual award, which recognizes excellence in marketing, was presented as part of the 2006 Small Business and Marketing Expo.

James Riley, CEO and creative director of Red Letter communications Inc., described Rhodes as a "natural-born salesman." Riley presented the award.

Rhodes, 71, told a crowd of about 250 people that his business never would have prospered if he hadn't advertised on television and radio and in the local newspaper. The company's green logo is visible in its commercials and on its trucks. "I've never been able to afford to change that color," he joked.

Rhodes' business skills were visible even as a child. "I had a goat and a dog and a wagon. I was a pretty good trader," Rhodes said in a video shown at the luncheon.

School bored him, so he dropped out of high school. In January 1953, Rhodes, then 17, joined the Marines.

"I grew up in about 24 hours," he said.

He spent nearly six years in the military, including a stint guarding the U.S. Embassy in Ecuador.

Once out of the service, Rhodes worked as a bread salesman for Harvest Bread. He became acquainted with Jack Lewis Sr., founder of Bunny Bread. Lewis later offered Rhodes a partnership Plaza Car Wash in Cape Girardeau. The deal was done with a handshake.

"He's the reason I'm in the tire business," he told the crowd.

Unable to make a good living just washing cars, Rhodes expanded into car detailing and then the tire retread business in the mid-1960s.

He sold retread tires for $7.50 apiece.

"We'd sell a lot of tires and still not have much money," Rhodes recalled.

Soon, he started selling new tires and became a distributor of Dayton tires. His first truckload of tires from Dayton cost $13,000. Today, Plaza Tire is one of the largest distributors of Dayton tires in the United States.

Rhodes later dismantled the car wash, selling the equipment for scrap to make room for an expanded tire service.

The company today operates 46 stores and has about 350 employees.

Family members recalled that Rhodes often traded cars. His wife, Carole, sometimes found her car had been traded while she was getting her hair done at a beauty shop.

Rhodes said he's followed advice that Lewis gave him: "You either grow or you go."

His sons, Scott and Mark Rhodes, now run the business. But Pee Wee Rhodes still talks up Plaza Tire, ending his speech with a sales pitch. "I want all your business," he said with a smile.

mbliss@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 123