If you thought it seemed that every two years or so Standard Equipment Co., of Maryland, added another store or branch, you are right.
The John Deere dealer, which opened up shop in 1993 at one location with five employees, has grown to seven locations and 105 employees in the past decade.
The eastern and western shores of Maryland were open territories for John Deere. Standard Equipment stepped in 10 years ago and hasn’t stopped growing since.
Roy Neal, president of Standard Equipment, said customer service is the key to the company’s growth. At Standard Equipment, customer service is more than just empty words or lip service.
“In an effort to better understand our customers’ needs, we invited a customer to come speak to some of our employees about how we can improve our customer service,” recalled Neal. “Everyday is a challenge for something new with our customers. We are constantly putting ourselves in their shoes to help them make more money. This process proved to be valuable for all parties involved. In addition to the quality products, I believe that the attention to personal service is what helps set us and other Deere dealers apart from the competition.”
The company boasts seven locations serving the states of Maryland (not including Garrett County), Delaware, and the District of Columbia, including Frederick, Cumberland, Delmar, White Plains, Baltimore, and Landover, MD, as well as Middletown, DE.
Bob Clemmens, executive vice president, who started the company with Neal, said relationships are “standard” at Standard Equipment.
“A handful of committed people put forth, and continue to put forth, an effort that is designed to cultivate and develop relationships that have led to our success. Relationships are the key that unlocks the door to business success. Any successful company knows that, but it must apply that knowledge again, and again and again. Along with relationships, of course, comes fairness. All customers expect fair treatment. That is what they receive from Standard and they come back, again and again,” said Clemmens.
Part of that success comes from what the company calls “stick-to-it-iveness” — it doesn’t stop trying until the customer is satisfied.
“The success we achieved through the years has been a direct result of teamwork and success-driven people. We do not like to lose. We strive to finish what we start with all customers. We don’t like an unhappy customer or an employee for that matter. Unhappy customers don’t come back and unhappy employees are not as motivated,” explained Clemmens.
In Standard’s case, that means admitting when it has made a mistake and fixing it right away. It also means understanding the customer better so that mistakes can be avoided in the first place, he added.
Neal Clemmens have more than 60 years of experience in the construction trade and have been putting themselves in their customers’ shoes for quite a long while.
“We know what our job is. We call ourselves heavy equipment dealers, but, bottom line, our real job is to help contractors and other operators make more money. That’s what it comes down to,” said Neal.
Clemmens originally worked for another heavy- equipment dealer in Maryland, then moved into sales management and executive positions with various companies that helped give him the skills for the task at hand.
“Bob and I have been friends for many years and Bob was actually my supplier before we ventured into opening this business,” explained Neal. “Our background has always been the construction trade. I called Bob one day for some product support and the next thing I knew we were talking about going into business together. We certainly have had our tough times through the years but we have always managed to work through them and learn from them.”
One thing they have learned is that nothing beats experience. And, with that in mind, as they have gone on and grown the business through a series of acquisitions, they have made every effort to keep the existing staff on board.
“With all of our acquisitions, our goal is to keep the original employees, whenever possible,” said Neal. “We try to keep all the employees. We don’t let them go. They are valuable. They know their customers. They know the products. We consider them assets that will continue to make us successful in the future. We don’t want to lose our valuable assets and retention has helped fuel our growth.”
As indicated earlier, the rate of growth is a new location approximately every 700 days.
“We were two years with the Delmar and Frederick stores, before we acquired the Middletown store in 1995. In 1997, we purchased locations in Southern Maryland and Washington, D.C. area from Gardner Equipment. Gardner had both the lawn and garden and construction lines. We purchased the construction side of the business. In 1999, we purchased the Milton James Company so we could better serve Baltimore and the surrounding counties. Last year, we opened a seventh facility in Cumberland, Maryland,” Neal explained.
The new locations are a way to keep new customers and get new ones.
“We are proud of the fact that every two years we have done something to ignite customer confidence. Each new location makes it easier for Standard Equipment to service our customers,” Neal explained. “We are entrenched very strongly in Maryland and the surrounding areas. It is a high-growth area and we are part of that growth.
“Our customers are migratory. We are working very hard to ensure that no matter where they go throughout our area, they are still our customer. Our 37 mechanics, our experienced sales staff and all of the expertise of Standard Equipment is still available to them,” he added.
Neal said that customers have been very responsive to the new lines offered by John Deere.
“We are getting into the heavy-equipment market with such products as the 1050C 80,000-lb. (36,287 kg) bulldozer. Customers are also interested in the new J Series loaders, including the 824J six-yard loader that John Deere recently introduced.
“Standard Equipment has had many evolutionary changes over the years. John Deere is truly moving into a new era and Standard Equipment will be with John Deere as well as all our customers every step of the way. We are investing a lot of time, money and other resources in our staff so we can support all of John Deere’s products,” said Neal.
As evidence of that commitment, Neal announced that Standard has just been awarded the John Deere consumer work products contract for its Cumberland location and Allegheny County, which means that location also will sell skid steer loaders, compact excavators and the JD110 mini-loader backhoe.
While Standard does emphasize its John Deere line, it also carries a wide variety of other lines, including Morbark, chippers; Gehl, skid steer loaders; Trail King, trailers; Rammer, breakers, worksite gators; and JRB attachments.
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