Positive direction
Rental industry is moving forward
By Jeff Durgin
Bartell Morrison Inc. has been a leading manufacturer of concrete finishing equipment for more than 60 years. Founded in 1946, the business grew and quickly became the dominant supplier of concrete finishing power trowels to the Canadian market.
Over the years Bartell Morrison has grown and expanded its markets worldwide. The company also expanded its product lines to offer a full complement of equipment for the entire concrete industry. Bartell Morrison Inc. is located in a 50,000-square-foot facility in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, and its U.S. sales and distribution center is located in Keyport, N.J.
Pro Contractor Rentals recently interviewed president Jeff Durgin on a wide range of topics about the rental industry. Here’s what he had to say:
What is the state of the industry today?
The rental industry is the best that we’ve seen in a few years. The economy has only crept forward, and that may keep people renting more than buying. These days it’s hard to say when or if the economy will come back to where it was strongest. It’s nice to see that many of the dealers who had sold to the nationals are done with their non-compete agreements, and are coming back into the business. That’s the customer we enjoy working with, as well as those who never left. Growing up in the equipment rental business has given me a good understanding of what it takes to service our rental dealers, and has directed our primary focus to independently owned companies.
What are the critical issues today?
The most critical issues facing the industry are unfortunately driven by our government. The new health insurance regulations have proven to be more of a problem than most of us were expecting. Small business financing is harder to find than ever, and the EPA and C.A.R.B. restrictions have made it difficult to supply products that meet regulations. We are still the greatest country in the world, but we’re way overdue for a real change.
What do you want your customers to know about Bartell Morrison?
Bartell Morrison manufactures most of its products right over the border in Mississauga, Ontario Canada. Our U.S. facility is located in central New Jersey and handles everything for our customers. We stock units and parts, handle all of the billing and shipping, and even do light assembly. Thanks to our customers, our tremendous growth will move us into a new, larger facility for 2014.
We are committed to the success of our dealers. I know those are pretty impressive words, but in reality we live by them. Selling a product is only part of the process. Making sure that product produces income for you is just as important. We empower our people to make the important decisions that help our customers right away. There is no red tape as you may find with bigger corporations. There will always be a human answering the phone and we don’t go by your account number. We take pride in knowing your name. We will run the company this way no matter how big we become.
How can rental companies be more effective in reaching their customers?
There are many different roads to take for marketing to your customers. It seems that social media is a good method these days, depending on your target audience. Maybe I’m just jaded, but it seems to me that most advertising is junk. As a society, we are so inundated with exaggerated claims that it’s hard to believe much of what we see in the media. There are very few products that I personally connect with as a result of all the hype. Maybe the best form of advertising is to simply get your name out there so people remember it. The quality of your products and service will ultimately be your best advertising.
How do we attract professional contractors to the rental market?
The traditional channels are through trade shows and print advertising. The World of Concrete show gives us the opportunity to meet the contractors running our products and get ideas on how to make them better. We find that print advertising helps to get our name out there, but we are cautious in our advertising claims.
For Bartell, rental is the best form of advertising we are involved with. What better way is there to get each piece of our equipment in the hands of multiple contractors? How much does it say about our equipment when a rental store deems it worthy of the contractor’s abuse? In my opinion, the equipment rental channel is the best form of advertising we have, and that’s why we are so committed to our independent rental dealers.
Jeff Durgin is president of Bartell Morrison Inc., a leading manufacturer of concrete
finishing equipment for more than 60 years. www.bartellmorrison.com
Originally published in the January/February 2014 issue of Pro Contractor Rentals. Copyright 2014 Direct Business Media.
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