According to recent news coverage from the Albert Lea Tribune, Kibble Equipment, a John Deere dealership with 12 locations in Minnesota, is closing its Albert Lea and Kiester stores and consolidating the operations to Blue Earth and Minnesota Lake.
The changes are said to be less about sales and more geared towards the need for dealerships to be prepared for the long term, as farm implement dealers are being forced to grow along with the changes being presented by today’s agriculture technology and service. The Albert Lea location is expected to close Aug. 1, while the Kiester store will close its doors Nov. 1.
Kibble Equipment, which calls Montevideo home, has plans to build a 48,000-square-foot dealership on the north side of Blue Earth. Construction is expected to begin within the next month according to the coverage. Agriculture equipment dealership consolidation is becoming something of a trend. Kibble Equipment General Manager Butch Kibble, said in the Tribune article, “You are either going to be a dealer of the future or not.”
Following this recent trend, Bevins Motor Group a John Deere dealership located in Georgetown, Kentucky, is in the midst of moving its current location to an expanded 10-acre lot nearby to better meet the needs of its customers and to support the larger, more technologically-advanced nature of today’s agriculture equipment.
As farms continue to grow and the number of farmers working them dwindle, dealerships are following suit. As farms continue to specialize their operations, dealerships like Bevins Motor Group and more recently, Kibble equipment, are consolidating to offer a higher level of service to customers.