Before reading this article you may have thought. One day I’d like to go to a Three Michelin Star restaurant, not like the Michelin Man tire company, of course.

Psych.

The two are one and the same.

But why would a tire company enter the arena of fine dining critics?

The initial idea was to encourage travel and, as a consequence, wear down tires; creating more demand.

More consumers would venture out if they had a guide to shops and attractions around town.

After a few years, they launched a country-specific edition throughout Europe which gained enough traction they eventually started charging for it.

A sign of product market fit.

Then enter the year 1926.

A lightning strike destroys an ammunition depot in Dover, New Jersey.

That’s completely irrelevant besides the additional support that the year was popping and the Michelin tire company expanded into fine dining.

Five years later, they created the famous three-star ranking system still used today.