Business View Magazine | December 2019

92 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE DECEMBER 2019 worked there for a couple of years, and then the Central Illinois territory was open, so Gary asked him to start a dealership in Eureka, Illinois, and that’s how it started. When we moved here, I was in seventh grade and I started working after school and Saturdays from then on. My brother, who’s now retired, actually left the business for about five years and came back, but this is all I’ve ever done.” Junior and his wife Beverly opened that first Vermeer Midwest location in 1971. Their personal approach and dedication to helping customers succeed saw the customer base grow quickly, along with the number of locations. Today, the company’s management team carries Junior’s vision forward on a larger scale with a multi-state operation. Vermeer Midwest is headquartered in the small town of Goodfield, Illinois, about seven miles north of Eureka. Nine additional offices are located in Aurora, IL; Chesterfield, MO; East Moline, IL; Fishers, IN; Fort Wayne, IN; Fowlerville, MI; Kalkaska, MI; Marne, MI; and Newburgh, IN. In total, the firm has 225 employees, and each facility differs depending on the size of the customer base. New and used equipment sales, parts, and service are all strong revenue streams. As Steve Kool explains, “We always say, ‘sales gets the first machine to a customer and then parts and service sells everyone, thereafter.’ The past few years, parts and service is growing quicker than sales, for a few reasons. One is the equipment gets more sophisticated, so it’s harder for customers to work on it, themselves. And we offer a lot of what Vermeer calls ‘Confidence Plus’ packages – additional warranty, combined with a planned maintenance program. We’re selling more all the time; it’s in a real growth pattern.” The add-on packages and equipment can be financed, so it’s all part of one payment; a fixed cost for the customer. Vermeer Midwest helps arrange financing through DLL Financial Solutions, a partner of Vermeer Corporate. The company’s largest customer is the underground utility business; number one being VERMEER MIDWEST Courtesy of John Kelley Courtesy of John Kelley Courtesy of John Kelley