Interview with Ag West Supply Equipment Distributer

Ag West Supply – Large Distributer of Farm Equipment in Oregon
Doug Hiebert – Sales and Distribution Manager – 800-842-2224

Interview with Joe Bingold

6 months in advance they need to order tractors. Can order anytime in the year.

Fall and Spring is order-writing periods for farm accessories (i.e., all large equipment other than tractors, including pull behind equipment). Manufacturer’s build most equipment on demand and have lead times as they get equipment from other vendors. It is hard to get equipment ahead of time. Generally, farmers on the west coast play second fiddle to the farmers / distributers in the mid-west who get priority from the manufacturers. (I’m guessing this is more true for the pacific northwest than it is for California.)

When a farmer asks Doug for a piece of equipment that he doesn’t carry, often there is a suitable replacement that will do the same job, which Doug does carry. Doug knows what particular equipment is suitable for their needs (primary and secondary tools) – knows what the farmer really needs.

Once a year they will have a field day where farmers and other potential customers come and watch the equipment work. Doug likes these field days, he always gets a few good orders out of the field day.

Sometimes Doug will go demo a piece of equipment at the farmer’s facility – but that happens when he knows that someone is pretty interested.

Ag West Supply has an exclusive arrangement with Case IH. Most distributers have an arrangement with one of the big manufacturers. They are allowed to sell equipment made by someone else as long as it’s not a competing project.

Doug goes to a few shows a year to find out what is new and hot in the farming community. Based on reviews from these shows, he may order a piece of equipment to try it out and demonstrate it to the farmers at the field day. Sometimes, he’ll straight-up order a few units according to what they think they can sell.

Doug won’t bring in just one piece for a customer, he needs to have a few pieces of the same type for his economies of scale to work out. He tries to turn everything in a year, sometimes material gets carried a couple years.

The manufacturer (Case IH) will sometimes help out with equipment that is not selling well.
Ag West territory is Willamette Valley – Portland to Eugene. Madras.
Vegetable farms are mostly in the Woodburn area of Oregon.