Titan’s Reitz wins Entrepreneur of the Year Midwest award, now eligible for national award

CHICAGO — Ernst & Young LLP announced Monday that Paul Reitz, CEO of Titan International, Inc. was named an Entrepreneur Of The Year Midwest award winner for 2023. The Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards program is one of the preeminent competitive awards for entrepreneurs and leaders of high-growth companies.

Reitz was selected by an independent judging panel made up of previous award winners, leading CEOs, investors and other regional business leaders. The candidates were evaluated based on their demonstration of building long-term value through entrepreneurial spirit, purpose, growth and impact, among other core contributions and attributes.

As a Midwest award winner, Reitz is now eligible for consideration for the Entrepreneur Of The Year national award. The national award winners, including the Entrepreneur Of The Year national overall award winner, will be announced in November at the Strategic Growth Forum, one of the nation’s most prestigious gatherings of high-growth, market-leading companies. The Entrepreneur Of The Year national overall award winner will then move on to compete for the World Entrepreneur Of The Year award in June 2024. 

“This is truly an honor to be personally recognized, but ultimately, it’s a testament to the fact that we have an exceptional team in place at Titan,” Reitz said in a press release. “I couldn’t be more proud to lead the One Titan team that is deeply committed to serving our customers with market-leading products and successfully navigated a challenging business climate the past few years. Our One Titan team has been on a transformative journey that has positioned us well for the future.”

Under Reitz’s leadership, Titan reached record levels in sales ($2.17 billion), adjusted EBITDA ($253 million), adjusted net income ($140 million) and free cash flow ($114 million) in 2022. This success, however, was years in the making. Since joining Titan as chief financial officer in 2010 — and previously being promoted to president in 2014 and CEO in 2017 — Reitz has personally spearheaded a number of global and strategic initiatives that have drastically improved operating efficiency and financial health for the company, including:

• Helped solidify the licensing agreement expansion with Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company to allow Titan the ability to distribute the Goodyear Farm Tire brand into 127 additional countries.
• Launched the One Titan framework — an internal initiative that brought together the company’s global team in a way that significantly improved collaboration, efficiency and decision-making.
• Safely remained in operation after being deemed critical infrastructure by numerous national governments during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Fortified Titan’s balance sheet from a position of weakness to a strength with healthy cash flow, low debt leverage profile and the ability to drive strong future capital allocation including organic/inorganic growth opportunities.
• Developed a framework and built a team responsible for defining environmental, social and governance global corporate strategy while aligning with numerous United Nations Global Compact policies.

Past Entrepreneur Of The Year honorees are Daymond John of FUBU, Howard Schultz of Starbucks Coffee Company, James Park of Fitbit, and Reid Hoffman and Jeff Weiner of LinkedIn Corporation.

Titan International, Inc. is a leading global manufacturer of off-highway wheels, tires, assemblies and undercarriage products. Headquartered in Quincy, the company produces a broad range of products to meet the specifications of original equipment manufacturers and aftermarket customers in the agricultural, earthmoving/construction and consumer markets. In the United States, the company produces two distinct tire brands — Goodyear Farm Tires and Titan Tires.