Dealer Local Deere Dealership Sold

[mred2]

Many years ago, I work for a large dealership of construction equipment, I was told that most manufacturers wanted to get down to no more than 50 dealerships in the U.S.
One per state or less. Less people to work with. And yes, they are pushing smaller dealer ships out. They want the dealerships to be large to handle the money that must be needed to push their products, stock parts, train employees and will do things their way. Doing it their way is the most important. The small shops just can not come up with the money to floor plan 50 tractors, $250,000 in parts, a $500,000 building, service trucks, etc. And the old timers just don't like being told what they have to do.
As far as to the pharmacist. I did work for a large drug store chain 20 years ago. They would go into a small town with an older drug store. Offer to buy out the pharmacist, hire him to run the store and pay him as much as he was making on his own. He did not have to do all the paper work anymore. Our government with all of the requirements to run a business has put a lot of small people out of business.

 

[Zebrafive]

Same thing happened with small pharmacies many years ago. They couldn't compete with the chain pharmacies and closed. Then we'd see the local pharmacist working his last few years before retirement behind the counter at the chain store. I asked him what happened. He said "Life." Fight it and you die bitter. Accept it, and you can still make a decent living, see your favorite customers, and best of all, he didn't have to worry about managing the place anymore. He made the lemonade from the lemons.

As for Deere Dealerships, same thing happened around here over the past decade with greemark equipment. 17 locations.

Locations - Greenmark Equipment

The local dealer here, sold to GreenMark about ten years ago. Former owner(s) are manager(s) there. Parts guys said they lost a lot of "perks". Some salesman left due to changes in how they would be paid.

They did build a new dealership, so at least it's a couple miles closer, and I still get the same discount on parts as before, zero/nothing.

 

[buck12]

Been that way in the Mid South for some time. Greenway has most of Arkansas and a lot of Missouri. Tennessee Tractor has of course Tennessee. Wade in Mississippi.
Deere pushed it. Either sell to the conglomerate or Deere drops you in some cases. CaseIH did the same.

Wade for many years has slowly and steadily acquired dealerships one by one. I know several people that worked at dealerships before Wade acquired the dealerships.

 

[ultrarunner]

A friend owns a small GMC Buick in a remote area... so far he had done well... GM says it is underserved...

Of course that could all Chang but something to be said for niche market dominance... is also very active with the high school shop students.

 

[CoyPatton]

Many years ago, I work for a large dealership of construction equipment, I was told that most manufacturers wanted to get down to no more than 50 dealerships in the U.S.
One per state or less. Less people to work with. And yes, they are pushing smaller dealer ships out. They want the dealerships to be large to handle the money that must be needed to push their products, stock parts, train employees and will do things their way. Doing it their way is the most important. The small shops just can not come up with the money to floor plan 50 tractors, $250,000 in parts, a $500,000 building, service trucks, etc. And the old timers just don't like being told what they have to do.
As far as to the pharmacist. I did work for a large drug store chain 20 years ago. They would go into a small town with an older drug store. Offer to buy out the pharmacist, hire him to run the store and pay him as much as he was making on his own. He did not have to do all the paper work anymore. Our government with all of the requirements to run a business has put a lot of small people out of business.

Not true on the pharmacist paperwork! If as typical, he was the managing pharmacist, he not only had to file the paperwork for the business, but now also had to file the new chain ownerships paperwork! As any pharmacist about required federal tracking requirements for drugs and the paperwork requirements would chase all prospective students to a different field.
Anyone that thinks a chain store reduces paperwork, has never done paperwork for a small business or a chain either!
I have done paperwork for both! And fathered a pharmacists!

 

[Motorboatin]

When I was shopping for my tractor the closest JD dealer is family owned and I was dealing with the retired former owner that still came in twice a week. Long story short they were considerably more expensive than the large corporate owned JD dealer I also visited

Local mom and pops are not always what people make them out to be. I wouldn't be afraid to buy from a conglomerate if the service and sales people were friendly and attentive

 

[two_bit_score]

I have two cousins who worked at a locally owned JD dealership with multiple locations in Texas. The small chain dealership sold to a larger dealership chain organization. Both cousins still work for the larger group dealership at better positions and make more money. The new dealerships are better stocked and better organized.

I’ve seen this in several business lines over the years. Overall, it’s probably better but I still don’t like to see the small entrepreneur go if it’s involuntarily.
If it’s their choice, fine.

 

[MossRoad]

 

[RickB]

You absolutely know that a large handful of dealers that had been competing with each other for decades didn’t wake up the same day and decide to sell to an outfit 1800 or more miles away. Mother Deere had a heavy hand in this deal.

 

[WM75Guy]

It isn't just the little guys being bought out. Fernandez Holdings created United Ag and Turf by merging Coufal-Prater John Deere and Brazos Valley Equipment John Deere, which are 2 companies it owns with multiple locations. Our local family owned JD dealership was bought by Ag-Power, which at the time had locations in Texas and Oklahoma. Ag-Power built a new location with a much larger building and inventory, along with better prices and service. A while back Ag-Power sold the Texas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas locations to United Ag & Turf. Ag-Power kept the Missouri locations. Now we will see how United Ag & Turf does business.