Spring 2020 Strategies

CUSTOMER PROFILE

Creating a Destination Blish-Mize Helps Iowa Retailer Expand His Customer Base

T ractors for the farm, a washing machine for the home or a jar of jelly for a gift: These are some items customers might be surprised to find at Glenwood Farm Equipment. And that’s just what owner John Stortenbecker wants as he expands his customer base.

A few years ago, he began looking for an operation of his own to purchase. He remembers someone asking him if he had considered looking into Glenwood Farm Equipment, as the owner was thinking of retirement. “I asked, ‘Where is that?’ Unless you were a farmer, you probably never heard of the place,” he says. He says that used to be a typical response in the area. Glenwood Farm Equipment had a long and successful history of selling large machinery to area farmers, but Stortenbecker saw a lot of opportunities to diversify away from a niche market to a broader appeal. He and his father decided to give it a try.

Since he purchased the business three years ago, Stortenbecker has been transforming it from an operation that catered mainly to one type of customer —farmers needing to purchase or repair large equipment—to a hardware store that can be a destination for the whole town. He’s also able to do that at his own pace. With his partnership with Blish-Mize, he has the flexibility to add categories in response to the unique needs of his customers. Rethinking a Business When it comes to hardware, Stortenbecker knows what customers want. He has been working in the hardware business since he was 17.

Glenwood Farm Equipment owner John Stortenbecker (right) has partnered with Allen Murray, owner of a local handyman service, to help install the appliances he sells.

36 Spring 2020 • Hardlines Strategies