Tommy Coker opened Bulldog Tire in Covington in 1986, more than a quarter century ago. He had worked in a tire company in Monroe for 19 years before that.

"I finally decided I wanted to do something on my own," Coker said. He scouted out Covington for many months before deciding to open a Bulldog location with his partner Ronnie Ward, who owns the Bulldog Tire store in Monroe and co-owns two other Bulldog stores in Snellville and Griffin.

"We built it from the rock up," Coker said.

He described Bulldog as a "one-stop service" store, which provides complete car care, (except auto body work), from oil changes to tires to any mechanical issues car owners might face.

He said the store, which has 13 employees, typically sees between 40 and 60 customers a day, but has seen a slowdown in business in the last couple months.

The business is located at 4108 N. Elm Street, Covington, and is open from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m Saturdays. They can be reached at (770) 787-6030 or http://bulldogcovington.com