John William Billes was a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 businessman and co-founder of Canadian Tire

Canadian Tire

Canadian Tire Corporation, Limited is one of Canada's 60 largest publicly traded companies. The firm operates an inter-related network of businesses engaged in retailing hardgoods, apparel and petroleum as well as financial and automotive services, employing more than 58,000 people across Canada...

. Born in Toronto, Ontario, in 1922 he and his brother Alfred

Alfred J. Billes

Alfred Jackson Billes, CM was a Canadian businessman and co-founder of Canadian Tire. Born in Toronto, Ontario, at age sixteen, he went to work as a clerk at a branch of the Dominion Bank. In 1922 he used his savings to team up with his brother William to buy Hamilton Tire and Garage Ltd. in Toronto...

 bought Hamilton Tire and Garage Ltd. in Toronto

Toronto

Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

. The following year they moved the garage to downtown Toronto where they began the conversion to a garage/retail business. In 1927 they incorporated under the name Canadian Tire Corporation Ltd. with William Billes as its President.

In 1934, Canadian Tire opened its first official associate store in Hamilton, Ontario

Hamilton, Ontario

Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...

 and over the next twenty years the Billes brothers expanded into a full line of automotive products and then added home and garden supplies. William Billes oversaw the most successful Canadian owned and operated franchise in the country's history that would expand into a nationwide network of dealer operated associate stores. He died unexpectedly in November 1956 as a result of complications from pernicious anemia

Pernicious anemia

Pernicious anemia is one of many types of the larger family of megaloblastic anemias...

. He bequeathed his share

Share (finance)

A joint stock company divides its capital into units of equal denomination. Each unit is called a share. These units are offered for sale to raise capital. This is termed as issuing shares. A person who buys share/shares of the company is called a shareholder, and by acquiring share or shares in...

s in Canadian Tire to twenty-three different charitable organization

Charitable organization

A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization . It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization (NPO). It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A...

s.

Following its formation in 1979, William Billes was inducted posthumously into the Canadian Business Hall of Fame

Canadian Business Hall of Fame

The Canadian Business Hall of Fame honours "Canada's most distinguished business leaders", selected by an independent panel representing Canadian business, academic and media institutions....

.