Member profile: Move to new facility a response to community’s growth
By Connie Lannan
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Member profile: Move to new facility a response to community’s growth

Terry Allen, president, Webber Rental & Supply, Galesburg, Ill., and his wife, Virginia, bought the business from the original owners in 2001. Just as they were cementing their stamp on the rental operation that had been serving the community since 1984, the economy took a nosedive. It has taken time for the area to rebound, but their recent move to a larger and newer facility indicates how far the community has come back. 

“We started in 2001. In 2005, we lost our area’s two biggest employers, Maytag and Butler Manufacturing. We lost both of those entirely and then saw a major cutback at Gates Rubber. Our area lost 5,000 jobs,” Terry says.

Those devastating blows took their toll on the business that always has served primarily the construction and general tool markets along with some party, including portable restrooms. “It impacted both our contractor and homeowner business. There weren’t any jobs available here. Many people moved out of the area. The whole local economy took a huge hit for at least three or four years,” says Terry, who serves as president of the ARA of Illinois.

To help stay afloat, the Allens purchased a local lawn care company, which they still operate. “That helped us pay the bills,” Terry says. They also added retail to the mix.

“We have been a Ferris commercial mower dealer for about 16 years. We added Simplicity to that about four years ago,” which supplemented the rental portion of the business, he says.

As the economy started to pick up, so did business. By 2008, the Allens needed a larger location, so they moved. About three years ago, they realized they had outgrown that location, too, so they went hunting for another, larger site.

Then the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic hit, forcing many businesses to shut down. The Allens weren’t sure how their business would be impacted, but they were pleasantly surprised.

Being an essential business, their operation stayed open. “The shutdown was our best year to date. We saw our customer base increase on the homeowner side, too, because everyone was doing their own work or hiring small contractors to do work for them,” Terry says, adding that business has continued to increase as COVID-related restrictions have been lifted.

When they were approached by Bobcat to be a Bobcat grounds maintenance dealer, handling the compact tractor line, including mini track loaders, utility vehicles, mowers and smaller articulated loaders, they knew they had to make the move.

After spending seven or eight weeks refurbishing a former Lincoln-Mercury car dealership, the Allens spent their Christmas 2020 and New Year’s 2021 moving in.

“Our new location offers us three times more space than what we had. It has approximately 4,000 sq. ft. of showroom, 1,500 ft. of office space and 9,000 sq. ft. of shop space and a large outside storage lot for our bigger equipment, for our portable restrooms, etc.,” Terry says. “We could not have added all the Bobcat line and tried to service that out of our old location. We were bursting at the seams and needing more room.”

Their new location, which is on a corner lot encompassing about 1.5 acres, is just three blocks from their previous location. “Now we are just a half-block off the town square. I can sit at my desk, look out our large showroom windows and watch all the traffic go around the town square,” he says.

His longtime customers gave their vote of approval. “They just said, ‘Wow.’ Our new facility is in nice shape and puts forth a really nice professional presence,” Terry says.

Business has never been better, Terry notes. “2020-2021 looks like the best two years we have ever had. We are already significantly over what we did last year. And we are attracting new customers. We have done more advertising this year with the new location and the addition of Bobcat. That has brought more walk-in trade. We have the large showroom, totally glassed on two sides, so people can drive by and see our equipment. That helps bring a lot of people in the door,” he says.

The retail has strengthened the rental and vice versa. “Rental has been increasing. Our retail and service have been expanding quickly, too. Each side feeds the other. Rental customers are becoming retail customers and retail customers are getting exposed to our rental side. Each one is helping the other,” he says.

His customers, whether new or longtime, see the business as an important community resource, Terry notes.

“We are part of the community. A lot of our customers know us on a first-name basis. Many of our kids grew up together and we are part of the same local organizations. A lot of our customers are second or third generation of the same family we have dealt with over the years. We are still the local guys. People can walk in the door and talk with the owners. People like knowing who they are talking to and knowing that they are talking with the decision-maker,” Terry says.

For the Allens, it is the person-to-person interaction with customers that is so satisfying.

“I like the people. We deal with a lot of really good people. It is great when a customer comes back from a rental and thanks us for having good equipment that worked well for their job, for offering suggestions for how to make the job easier, etc. That is why we are here — to offer that personal touch. You have to give that to your customers — that and good quality rental equipment that works,” he says.

For the Allens, that way of operating has not only firmly connected them with their community, but it also has helped them build a solid business despite going through all those lean years. That is why moving into a newer and larger facility is that much sweeter. It reflects how far both have come.

Connie Lannan

Connie LannanConnie Lannan

Connie Lannan is special projects editor for Rental Management. She helps plan, coordinate, write and edit ARA’s quarterly regional newsletters, In Your Region. She also researches, writes and edits news and feature articles for Rental Management, Rental Pulse, supplements, special reports and other special projects. Outside of work, she loves to bake for others, go for walks with her husband and volunteer for her church and causes she believes in.

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