Rural Lifestyle Dealership of the Year
S&H Farm Supply, Rogersville, Mo.
In a changing region, a long-time farm equipment dealership embraces the rural lifestyle.
ship’s place in the emerging rural life- style market is as strong as it has been among farmers.
Chad Elmore, Contributing Writer
ust north of the Missouri city of Springfield on Highway 13, a bill- board tells travelers they’re in “S&H Country.” Part of a comprehen- sive marketing campaign, the slogan has helped make S&H Farm Supply’s store near the state’s third largest city more visible among large property owners, commercial cutters and hobby farmers. The typical customer at S&H Farm Supply’s dealership, a few miles east of Springfield, is changing as farms are converted into subdivisions or bro- ken up into smaller parcels and sold to urbanites who want a piece of the country. “The Rogersville location has been significantly challenged over the last several years by the same pressures that have faced the farm equipment industry in general,” says Eric Schnelle, president of S&H Farm Supply. “We’ve experienced a declining sales base for large equipment. However, we see a tremendous opportunity with the rural lifestyle customer as well as the com- mercial landscaper.” To meet this changing demand, S&H has shifted resources in manpower, inventory and advertising (it’s buying television and radio spots in addition to the billboards) to ensure the dealer-
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The move is paying off with increased floor traffic and sales. Current year-to-date sales figures and projections for 2011 are showing sig- nificant improvement over prior years. Although it’s weathered the down econ- omy well, business has been impacted overall by the recession as well as its changing customer base. The dealer- ship is in the middle of transitioning from selling high-dollar farm equipment to small units purchased by rural con- sumers and professional landscapers. Located along a busy commut- er highway between Rogersville and Springfield, the 2011 Rural Lifestyle Dealer Dealership of the Year winner is one of four S&H Farm Supply stores in southern Missouri. S&H Farm Supply was founded (and is still headquartered) in Lockwood, Mo., in 1969 by Eric’s father and company CEO Wayne Schnelle. Well-established among farmers in the Lockwood area, S&H first expanded its regional footprint in 2003 when it took over a struggling New Holland dealership in Springfield. Realizing location was just one of the dealership’s problems, S&H moved the operation to a brand-new building designed by Eric (see Farm Equipment’s March 2007 issue for more about this new location). More recently, S&H added a third and fourth location in Mountain Grove and Joplin (see the Summer 2011 issue of Rural Lifestyle Dealer for more about the Joplin store).
Getting the Word Out The new location helped boost sales, but with S&H’s traditional ag customer
selling off cropland and more people using their acreage for recreation, Schnelle realized the Rogersville store still had a problem: the “general con- sumers had no clue who we were.” Members of the management team
S&H Farm Supply, Inc.
Location: Rogersville, Mo. Year Founded: 2003 Major Line: New Holland Shortlines: Kioti, Scag, Exmark, Cub Cadet, Bad Boy, Walker, Arctic Cat, Stihl, Woods, Bush Hog, Kuhn Knight, AGCO Hesston, Vicon, Agri Fab, Schulte, Rhino, Earthmaster, Heatmore, Eden Pure, Outback Guidance Systems, EZ Trailer, Starlite, Schaben, Wylie, Wallenstein, Walton, Wheatheart, Herd, Great Plains, Kinze, DR Power Equipment Employees: 33
Total Revenue in 2010: $9,133,872.22
Revenue Breakdown by Department: a. Wholegoods $5,947,866.20 b. Parts
c. Service d. Other
$1,849108.27 $664,785.26 $97,213.43
e. 2010 Return on Assets: NA 2010 Parts/Service Absorption Rate: 53.49%
(Parts & Service Gross
Margins / Total Expenses) 3-Year Sales Growth Figures: a. 2010: b. 2009:
$9,037,055.79 $9,642,329.56
c. 2008: $10,415,288.77 8 RURAL LIFESTYLE DEALER DEALERSHIP OF THE YEAR SPECIAL REPORT JUNE 2013
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