If you need new tires or a brake job after heading out West, roll into Les Schwab Tire Centers. The company offers tires by name-brand and private-label manufacturers, custom wheels, and batteries at some 420 stores in Alaska, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington. It also provides alignment, brake, and shock work. Les Schwab Tire Centers prides itself on customer service, and it doesn't hurt that the chain's namesake wrote the bible of tire retailing: "Pride in Performance: Keep It Going." The company's roots reach back to 1952, when founder Les Schwab started his business with a single tire shop. Today the firm is owned by Schwab's family.