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Ag-Power will become Lang Diesel when the acquisition takes effect July 1. The Hillsboro business will remain a dealer for AGCO tractors and related implements. |
Ag-Power Inc., the AGCO farm implement dealership in Hillsboro, has been sold to Lang Diesel Inc. based in Hays, effective July 1.
The business will take on the new name at that time.
Ag-Power employees were informed of the transaction June 4.
Owners Mike and Carolyn Kleiber purchased the long-time Allis-Chalmers (now AGCO) dealership in 1986 and renamed it Ag-Power Inc.
Mike Kleiber said Friday the sale to Lang Diesel Inc. was motivated by changes in AGCO?s approach to dealerships.
?AGCO is following suit like many of the other equipment companies?they want to consolidate dealers and they want dealers with multiple locations,? Kleiber said.
?They?ve been after us for a succession plan for awhile. Long story short, our succession plan didn?t include multiple locations of farm equipment dealerships.
?We decided that for the health of the dealership, this was the right move.?
The acquisition includes only the Ag-Power implement dealership. Ag-Power Carquest will continue under the same ownership.
Kleiber said Lang Diesel is compatible with Ag-Power?s approach to customers and community involvement, so the transition should be smooth.
?Lang Diesel is a very well-run company and they?re aggressive in the market,? he said. ?They?ve got multiple locations. It just seemed like a good fit. We?re really comfortable with them as a company, and we feel they will definitely continue the tradition Ag-Power has had.?
Lang Diesel Inc. has been serving farmers as a farm-equipment dealership since 1988. Beyond its headquarters in Hays, it has locations in Colby, Sabetha, Smith Center, Ellinwood and Salina.
In addition to being a full-line AGCO dealership, the company offers various short-line products, the most recent additions being Miller sprayers and Versatile four-wheel-drive tractors.
The company?s Web site address is langdieselinc.com.
?We thank Mike and Carolyn for giving us the opportunity to continue with the values and traditions Ag-Power Inc. has established with their customers and community through the years,? Brian Lang, president of Lang Diesel, wrote in a letter to Ag-Power customers last week.
He said Monday that the Hillsboro dealership fits in well with the other Lang Diesel locations, and it has a proven track record.
?I knew it was a thriving dealership opposed to one that?s going the other direction,? Lang said.
Kleiber said no changes are planned at this point in personnel at the Hillsboro location. Ag-Power currently has 12 employees.
?Personnel-wise, we hope everybody will stay,? he said. ?Everybody has a position there.
?Brian is a laid-back guy,? Kleiber added. ?He is not a micro-manager. He let?s his locations run themselves.?
Lang said he hopes the new relationship will enable the Hillsboro store to grow its customer base.
?There?s no question that the reason AGCO allows us to acquire dealerships is to take it to the next level, increase that market share,? he said.
Lang said a dealership with multi-store locations has advantages.
?One is inventory,? he said. ?One thing that helps us on the dealership side is if we have disasters at one location, you can move some of that inventory to another location.
?The flip side is, if one location has a need, a lot of times you can source that out of another store.??
Lang said he anticipates a positive future.
?I?m excited to look forward to working with the crew down there,? he said. ?I don?t know everybody yet, but I?ve known Gerald (Funk, manager) for a long time, and some of the other people, too.
?We?re looking forward to getting some of the expertise from there.?
