[5] A few years later, while on a trip to California, Moe Strauss noticed that many successful West Coast businesses used their owners' first names.

As soon as Strauss returned to Philadelphia, the company's name was officially changed to "The Pep Boys – Manny, Moe & Jack".

[8] The Great Depression struck in 1929, but Manny and Moe had not incurred business debts other than reasonable mortgages on store properties.

Although unemployment rates reached 40 percent in some areas, Manny and Moe did not lay off employees or cut salaries during the Depression.

Manny's grandson, Stuart Rosenfeld, Pep Boys' vice president of distribution, is the only founding family member currently in company management.

Larry Stevenson, from the Canadian book retailer Chapters, was named CEO later that year and served until pressured by the company's two largest shareholders to resign in July 2006.

[10] The following year, Pep Boys Chief Operating Officer Michael "Mike" R. Odell became Interim CEO with the resignation of Jeff Rachor.

The acquisition gave Pep Boys an additional 84 service and tire centers in Alabama, Florida, and Georgia, including concentrations around Atlanta and Orlando.

[16] In January 2012, Pep Boys announced that it had agreed to be acquired by The Gores Group, a Los Angeles-based private equity investment company, for $15 per share, or approximately $1 billion.

[18] In June 2015, Scott P. Sider, group president of Hertz Corporation's Rent A Car Americas, became the company's new CEO.

In February 2016, Icahn announced that it completed its acquisition of Pep Boys in an all-cash transaction for $18.50 per share or approximately $1.03 billion.

[23] In September 2019, Pep Boys agreed to pay $3.7 million to settle a lawsuit alleging the company violated California laws by illegally dumping hazardous waste.

In December 2023, Pep Boys announced the company had completed its transition away from retail operations to focus exclusively on automotive services, including its locations in Puerto Rico.

[27] [28] In February 2024, David Willetts was appointed as CEO of Pep Boys, with Scott Collette transitioning to Chief Operating Officer, marking a leadership shift during a period of significant organizational change.