While not trying to be all things to all tractor buyers, Montana Tractors is trying to take a bite of the under 100-hp market. Their target customer are hobby farmers and country dwellers who want a tractor for mowing and other light-duty chores around the homestead. Right now, Montana sells tractors in the 23 to 70 hp, but may have models up to 100-hp in the future.
The company started in the spring of 2004 from scratch, with financial backing of three private individuals. Growth has been solid since then, said CEO Rodney Miller recently at the company's annual dealer meeting. The company doesn't reveal actual numbers of tractors sold, but 2006 dollar sales were about $80 million. That represents a 48% jump in retail sales over the previous year, at a time when overall sales of compact and utility tractors were down several points.
Montana now has over 350 dealers, many of them located in the sunbelt states from Texas to the east coast. That's the "hotbed" geography of many new acreage dwellers. "We're still trying to figure out who these people are, and give them a quality product, with value," says Miller. "Many of them are first-time landowners, and they may take a little different kind of service. They may have never operated a tractor before."
Montana doesn't have any of its own manufacturing facilities. Rather, it buys tractors and some components from other companies and does assembly work at its Springdale, Arkansas, facilities, addng the Montana brand label. Over 80% of the tractors come from a Korean Company, LS Technologies, that makes the leading tractor brand in that market.
Miller says that 94% of all Montana tractors are sold with a loader attached. The Montana loaders, as well as a full line of other attachments, are specially designed and made for Montana by other manufacturers. "Our goal is to build the kind of tractor that people want to buy," he says. One of our advantages is that we're nimble - we can react quickly to market signals."
Most Montana dealers are non-traditional equipment dealers from a farm standpoint, says Miller. The best ones are often on the fringes of a metro area, and do not offer another tractor brand, although that's not a requirement.
He expects 2007 to be a year of growth for his company, but perhaps not to the degree of it's first three years. "Higher commodity prices could help bring about an increase in sales of big tractors, and our lineup will follow along with that," Miller predicts.
To contact Montana or locate a dealer call 800/872-1910 or visit them on the Web at www.montanatractors.com
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