The Great Depression struck in 1929, but Manny and Moe had not incurred business debts other than reasonable mortgages on store properties. Pep Boys was thereby insulated from the severe downturn that destroyed so many other businesses. Although unemployment rates reached 40 percent in some areas, Manny and Moe did not lay off employees or cut salaries during the Depression. In 1933, Manny's brother, Murray Rosenfeld, opened the first West Coast Pep Boys store as part of a separate company named The Pep Boys - Manny, Moe & Jack of California and managed the Western operations. Within three years, Pep Boys of California had opened 11 stores.