Auto Tire and Parts NAPA celebrates 100th anniversary of family-owned business

Wayne Koenig was just 18 years old when he started working as a delivery driver and sweeper in 1967 at the Auto Tire and Parts storefront in Perryville, Mo.

Though he longed to one day follow in his father's footsteps as an employee at an auto body and parts business, Koenig never dreamed he'd be working at the same store for 42 years.

"I knew back then that I wanted to stay on the same career path as my father, but I didn't know where [it] would take me," said Koenig, now a manager at the store. "But like so many of us who work at our stores, I developed a loyalty to the company that grew through the years. They've treated us well, and we're looking forward to being a part of the company as it continues maintaining that family atmosphere."

Koenig was among 300 employees and guests attending a 100th anniversary celebration Monday for Auto Tire and Parts NAPA. The event at the Osage Community Centre in Cape Girardeau included displays from the company's suppliers, a meal and an address by former Miami Dolphin running back Larry Csonka.

Like Koenig, longtime employee Gary McKown started working for the company as a delivery driver during high school. Thirty-nine years later he's still employed at the Sikeston, Mo., store, though he's since become a manager.

McKown said despite its addition of new storefronts, the company's commitment to its customers and employees has remained the same since it was founded in 1909.

"I've always been a gear head and valued family and hard work," McKown said. "So when the opportunity to begin working with this company became available, it was a natural fit. I know other companies also have a family atmosphere, too, but here I've seen it in action."

Auto Tire and Parts NAPA opened its first store at Broadway and Spanish Street in 1909 in Cape Girardeau response to a demand for parts. In addition to auto parts and tires, the store also carried wagon parts, because some of its customers still relied on horse-drawn carriages for transportation.

As cars became more popular, the store concentrated its efforts more on auto parts rather than tires and by 1929 the store stopped selling tires.

The company changed ownership in 1948 when Pat Tlapek purchased the business. The 1950s marked a significant period of growth, with stores opening in Sikeston, Perryville and Charleston, Mo. During the same decade the original store relocated to Ellis Street and added a warehouse.

Growth continued in the 1960s and 1970s with expansions into the Missouri communities of Advance, Chaffee, Marble Hill, New Madrid and Scott City. In 1973 the Cape Girardeau store and warehouse moved again to its present location off Kingshighway.

By 1990 the company operated 13 stores and by the turn of the century had opened its 25th location. Today Auto Tire and Parts NAPA has more than 40 locations in Illinois, Kentucky and Missouri. Its most recent endeavor included remodeling its headquarters in Cape Girardeau, an effort that included adding a 1920 pickup truck, vintage gravity fed gas pump and a mural highlighting the company's history.

As company officials look toward the next 100 years, John Tlapek said Auto Tire and Parts NAPA will continue focusing on what he thinks first made it successful.

"There aren't too many family-owned stores that have been around for 100 years," said Tlapek, son of Pat Tlapek. "I attribute that to our customers and employees. Our goal is not to have the biggest but the best."

bblackwell@semissourian.com

388-3628

Pertinent address:

212 S. Kingshighway, Cape Girardeau, MO