In the last decade, the farm equipment dealership landscape has come to be dominated by corporate multi-store outlets. These days, finding a family-owned, single-store dealership is increasingly rare.
However, the Sowa family at Wadena, Sask., about 200 km east of Saskatoon, say they have no plans to change their multi-brand, single-store business model.
Bill Sowa, 93, a founding member of Wheatbelt Sales, still comes in every day to the business his family members and partners now operate. The dealership can trace its origin back 60 years to 1965.
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“I was in Toronto and got interested in bringing back used vehicles,” recalls Sowa.
“We got really large into bringing back cab and chassis trucks. It was a real niche market. We would bring them back and put boxes and hoists on them.
“We were bringing as many as 70 trucks a year, so we decided to go into business. We decided if we’re going to do that, to take on a dealership.”
In the inventory
Incorporating Massey Ferguson and GMC franchises into the business was the start of what Wheatbelt Sales has become today.
“We dropped GM after a couple of years because we found out we could make more money with used vehicles,” says Sowa.
“It kind of interfered with bringing back used vehicles. People could afford them more, too. That had a lot to do with it.”
Eventually, Wheatbelt Sales also undertook another unorthodox sales initiative: selling used equipment to overseas customers. It also sought to sell equipment widely across the Prairies rather than just into its local area.
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Part of the business philosophy has been to have a large number of machines on the lot ready for delivery to customers.
“Bill’s always been a big believer in inventory,” says co-owner Jim Sowa.
“If you don’t have it, you can’t sell it.”
Originally the business was located at Invermay, Sask., but eventually the owners saw a need to relocate to a larger community, so they chose Wadena, about 50 km west.
Construction started on a large new building there in 1978 and the move was made in 1980. However, there was already a MF dealer there, so Wheatbelt had to drop that franchise.
With the need to take on a new equipment line, Versatile became the choice. It and Kubota are now the core brands at Wheatbelt, along with a number of short-lines such as Bourgault.
Standing solo
Over the years, Bill says he developed a good relationship with manufacturers, which he believes helped the dealership by getting customer feedback directly to them and ensuring new machinery arriving on Wheatbelt’s lot was designed to meet customers’ needs.
“When I was in Toronto, I got involved with Massey engineers,” he says.
He also became friends with Peter Pakosh, one of the founders of Versatile.
Sowa credits the dealership’s continued single-store viability to having a succession of good partners. The family members now invested in the business have also brought a lot of experience and expertise in their respective fields, which has benefited the company.
Over the years the service department has become a major part of the dealership, and the family recognizes that parts support is key to maintaining customers. With nine service technicians on staff, Juston Sowa, also a co-owner, says the company could still use another four.
“I would say service has become a big part of our business,” adds Jim.
Being supportive of the dealership’s staff has also helped retain existing employees for the long term, he says.
“We had a (60th anniversary) event, and it was very touching to have some employees come up and say they felt like family with us. Treat people the way you want to be treated, and that gets you the furthest.”
The company was reorganized in 2003 under the current ownership group, allowing a couple of the original partners to retire. However, the original intention to focus solely on a single-outlet business remains in place.
“We have no intention of opening any other outlets,” says Bill.
“If we do any expanding, it will be right here in Wadena.”
