At the corporate level there are a lot of similarities between equipment manufacturers Horsch and Claas. Both are family-owned firms headquartered in Germany with wide product distribution around the world. But each company specializes in equipment not on the roster of the other.
So when Claas’ company-owned Canada West Harvest Centre dealership chain in Saskatchewan announced it was taking on the Horsch product line, the synergies seemed obvious.
Retailing the two brands together now gives the Canada West Harvest Centre outlets a full line of ag equipment to offer farmers — and Horsch gets significantly expanded dealer coverage in the province.
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“Having a full equipment lineup is great, and the Horsch and Claas product offerings complement each other perfectly,” CWHC dealership general manager Mike Malmgren says. “Being able do most of our business with two main suppliers makes it easier for my team, so we can devote more of our energy to serving our customers.”
Although Claas has had its own marketing arm in North America since 1979, as it worked to grow in the North American market in recent decades it relied heavily on the Caterpillar dealership network to retail its Lexion line of combines. It isn’t the first time Claas has sold combines under another OEM brand name. In 1965 it had an agreement with Ford, selling its combines under that brand.
In 1997 Claas entered a joint production arrangement for its Lexion combines with Cat, allowing those Cat dealers selling Challenger tractors to have another piece of ag equipment to offer farmers.
But Cat and Claas ended that limited agreement in 2002. A year earlier Cat also sold its Challenger tractor line to Agco, although many Cat dealers continued to retail both the Challengers and Lexions. In recent years, though, some of them too have decided to abandon the ag market and return solely to their original construction, mining and industrial focus.
That left Claas to find a new dealership network in those areas to support their existing customers. In a move similar to its strategy in Europe, Claas, itself, decided to take on the retail dealership activities in some regions no longer served by Cat dealers.
That resulted in opening the company-owned Canada West Harvest Centre chain of five outlets across Saskatchewan, along with another similar one in Nebraska.
Over the years, Claas has added to its North American product line, now offering harvesting, hay and forage equipment and a recently expanded line of tractors. But that still didn’t provide the brand’s dealerships with a full line offering. So the addition of the Horsch line, with its tillage, seeding, planting and sprayer equipment, now fills that product gap nicely.
WATCH THIS: Horsch gets ‘down to earth’ about its equipment line
But there are more than a few choices when it comes to adding shortline equipment to a dealership — so why pick Horsch?
“We had the privilege of visiting the Horsch factories in Bavaria earlier this year and experienced Horsch firsthand,” Malmgren says. “They are passionate about connecting with their customers and responding to their needs, which makes them a great partner for us as that’s our No. 1 priority too. They are also an innovative, product-focused, family company which aligns perfectly with Claas and Canada West Harvest Centre.”
Finalizing the details took some time — and the corporate dealerships in Europe that retail Horsch equipment offered a template on how to structure the retail arrangement here.
“We started initial discussions at the beginning of this year,” Horsch’s managing director Laurent Letzter says. “The rest was just getting to learn about each other, seeing the details of how to do business together. Because there are a lot of Claas dealers in Europe that also sell Horsch, there was also a lot of consulting.”
New products
Malmgren says Horsch’s recent opening of a 10,000-square foot parts distribution facility in Saskatoon was another key factor in deciding to go with Horsch.
“This might have been the most critical factor in making the decision.”
Being able to get into the seeding equipment market will be very important for CWHC, he notes. Horsch already offers seeding and planting equipment, and Letzter says the brand will soon have additional introductions on that front.
“We’re going to design some air drills specific to Saskatchewan (conditions). For us being a general seed drill manufacturer, we didn’t have those very particular demands. We’re making updates.”
“We’re also very excited about the self-propelled and pull-type sprayers,” Malmgren adds.
Initially, the number of machines available through CWHC will be limited, as the dealership chain ramps up to ensure it can properly support and service them — which includes getting staff trained in sales and service.
“We have a limited selection of machines we want to sell to their trusted customers,” Letzter says, “so we can see how everything works on the parts and service side and train their employees, their product specialists, service people.”
The training will take place at a new North American marketing and training centre Horsch is currently establishing in Minneapolis, although its North American corporate headquarters is at Fargo, N.D.
“We chose Minneapolis because we saw how complicated it was to get to Fargo from many places on the map,” Letzter adds. “There are no direct flights. I think every small airport on the Prairies has a direct flight to Minneapolis. We’re setting it up as we speak.”
“We’re adding more people to support the Horsch line,” Malmgren says. “We’re learning and that takes time. We are going to grow responsibly and make sure we can support what we sell.”
