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Yancey Bros. Co.

The History of Our Business

Founded in 1914 by brothers Goodloe H. Yancey, Jr. and B. Earle Yancey, Yancey Bros. Co. started its long history as the Yancey Hardware Company, selling hardware, picks, shovels and prison uniforms (stripes) to government agencies - especially county prisons - for road construction. With their business located in downtown Atlanta on Peachtree Street, the brothers Yancey held the distinction of being the first dealer in the United States for the old Adams mule grader, a predecessor of today's motorgrader, that was pulled by eight mules.

The Yancey brothers saw an opportunity in road building across the southeastern U.S., realizing that with long hours they could travel to see the customers, who were mainly the counties, during the week. So began their dual jobs as owners combined with the additional duties of salesmen, stockclerks, managers and bookkeepers. Busy selling on the road during the week, they would return to Atlanta on weekends to write the orders sold and ship the products out to their customers.


These long hours and hard work for the Yancey brothers paid off in the growth of their business. In 1916 they changed the name of the business to "Goodloe and Earle Yancey" and moved their offices into the old C&S National Bank Building. Two years later, in 1918, the company moved into a building on Marietta Street that had warehouse space in back of the office. They also opened branch offices in Birmingham, Alabama, Ft. Pierce, Florida, and Greenville, South Carolina.

But the world was changing. Equipment was changing. The days of the mule-powered grader were coming to an end. And the two brothers - savvy enough to see and embrace that change - shaped their company into the nation's first dealer of the innovative new "Caterpillar" crawler tractors manufactured by the Holt Manufacturing Company of Peoria, Illinois. In 1918, Goodloe heard of a tractor made by Holt that could do the work of, "40 mules, or 40 horses and countless humans". The two brothers traveled to Peoria to ask the manufacturer if they could represent the Holt line in the southeastern United States. The reception from Holt was less than warm - the company would not give the Yancey's a demo of the tractor to use. "You're wasting your time. You can't sell these tractors for road building, we've tried," was the response from Holt officials. They insisted that such machinery HAD to be sold direct, and that a distributor set-up would be a flop. Goodloe and Earle left Peoria after a week with only a photograph of the Holt "Model 45" tractor and a price quote of $4,750, C.O.D., per machine. Holt again turned its attention to producing crawler machines for the United States Army.

The county commissioners of Troup County, Georgia, took possesion of the first "Caterpillar" tractor delivered in the southeastern United States by the Yancey brothers. Mr. Goodloe (as he was fondly referred to) traveled to LaGrange to personally drive the tractor off the railroad flatcar, and people for miles around came into town to see this new machine work.

Within 12 months the Yancey's had sold all of the 45's Holt had in its inventory, using their salesmanship and the single photograph. When Mr. Goodloe and Earle returned to the Holt factory in Peoria the following year they were hailed as conquerors, and the first jobber's contract ever by Holt was given to them. Although their original agreement had been for only a five percent discount clause (a 5% profit on sales) the Holt officials gave them a contract with a higher commission and made the deal retroactive to their first sales. Mr. Goodloe recounted the $19,000 commission years later, "I hadn't known there was that much money in the world."

The Yancey brothers pioneered the distributor scheme of Holt (later Caterpillar), conceiving the plan and tenaciously forcing their way until accepted. They glorified their production by leading all the nation in sales of their product.

Holt would merge with Best Tractor Co. in 1925 to become the Caterpillar Tractor Company, now the world's largest manufacturer of earthmoving equipment. Records at Caterpillar's corporate offices in Peoria indicate that based on the original agreement date of December 19, 1918, <"Yancey is the dealer with whom Caterpillar and its predecessor companies have had the longest business association." Thus, Yancey Bros. Co. is proud to claim the title of, "The Nation's Oldest Caterpillar Dealer." The partnership of Yancey Bros. Co. and Caterpillar has seen much growth and change over the past eight decades. In 1924, the brothers established their new headquarters in downtown Atlanta at 634 Whitehall Street. It was at this time the firm changed its name to Yancey Bros., Inc. The company also saw its territory shrink, from 4 southeastern states (Georgia, Florida, Alabama and South Carolina) with Holt to just Georgia with Caterpillar.

The brothers decided to part ways in 1927 and split the Georgia territory in half. Mr. Goodloe continued the company alone for the 83 counties in the northern half of the state (as Yancey Bros., Inc.) while Earle moved his operations to Albany (as the Yancey Tractor Company) to become the Caterpillar dealer for the southern half of Georgia. Joining Earle in Albany as General Manager of his operationwas another brother, L.D. Yancey. L.D. was the father of another generation of Yancey brothers, Don and Goodloe III, and also the founding father of the Southeastern Caterpillar Dealers Association.

As Georgia prospered so did Yancey Bros. The company continued to grow and flourish, and does so still, based on the founders' fundamental principles: Goodloe H. Yancey, Jr. stood by his word. He delivered what he promised. He offered assistance when he could. As business grew, the need to expand across the territory also grew. In 1947, Yancey Bros. opened its first full-service product support branch in Augusta at 1781 Fifteenth Street. In that year the name of the firm was changed to the present name of Yancey Bros. Co.

1947 was also the year Earle's family sold the Yancey Tractor Company, thus interrupting the Yancey family's service to customers across the entire state. Due to the tremendous growth of business in the northern half of Georgia, Yancey Bros. Co. moved its corporate headquarters to a 12-acre site at 1540 Northside Drive in Atlanta in 1951. Six years later a second full-service product support branch opened in Macon.

Don A. Yancey, a nephew of Mr. Goodloe, became president of the company in 1959. Don started his career working for Earle and his father, L.D., with the Yancey Tractor Co. in Albany in 1936 as a salesman covering eighteen southeastern Georgia counties. After serving as a Major in World War II, Don joined Mr. Goodloe at Yancey Bros. Co. in 1946 as a salesman and later as branch manager of the Augusta branch. As President of the firm he took Mr. Goodloe's vision of the company one step farther. Seeing a market for quality industrial trucks, he purchased the Cat Towmotor lift truck dealership for northern Georgia from the Bailey Company. Yancey Bros. Co. had to grow to remain the leader.

In 1969, Don lead the company in its move to the current corporate headquarters at 330 Lee Industrial Blvd. in Austell. Located at the intersection of I-20 West and Six Flags Parkway four miles outside Atlanta's I-285 perimeter highway, Yancey's new facilities gave the company room for expansion and growth into the next century.

In 1974, Goodloe H. Yancey III assumed the presidency of the company upon the retirement of his brother, Don. Goodloe III joined Yancey Bros. Co. in 1954 as a Sales Trainee after serving in the U.S. Air Force as a Lieutenant. Between 1954 and 1965 Goodloe III worked as a mechanic's helper, as a parts warehouse order picker, and as a parts counter salesman. He also worked as one of the company's first Parts and Service Sales Representatives (PSSR), as a Machine Sales Representative, as Sales Coordinator and later as Sales Promotion Manager. Goodloe III became Vice-President of the company in 1966 and Executive Vice-President and General Manager in 1972.

Under Goodloe III's leadership and guidance Yancey Bros. Co. reached heights Mr. Goodloe and Earle could have only dreamed of. In 1980 the company opened its' first full-service truck engine support branch, and in 1984 acquired the Grissom-Harrison Corporation, a mining and aggregates equipment and support distributor.

In 1986, the company opened a full-service product support branch in Calhoun. Another full-service product support branch was built in Dacula in Gwinnett County in 1987 to further serve the metro Atlanta area along with limited-service "parts only" branches in Sandersville and Columbus.


1987 also saw a new division of Yancey Bros. Co. created. Sunbelt Power Systems was formed to provide truck engine support and primary and auxiliary electric power systems. Combined with the Earthmoving and Lift Truck Divisions, this Engine Division gave Yancey Bros. Co. a full array of Caterpillar opportunities in northern Georgia. Seven years later, the growth of Sunbelt Power prompted the opening of a new branch located at the intersection of Moreland Avenue and I-285. This new facility was designed to meet the demand of the trucking industry and to serve as the primary parts warehouse for Sunbelt Power. The 1994 calendar year also saw Yancey Bros. Co. sell its Lift Truck Division to another Caterpillar dealer that specializes in operating lift truck businesses.

Yancey Bros. Co. announced a plan of management and ownership succession for the company in 1994. It was announced that James E. Stephenson, son-in-law to Yancey's former president, Don Yancey, would become the company's primary stockholder. A successful trial lawyer with experience in construction law, Stephenson was named President and Cheif Executive Officer of Yancey Bros. Co. in September of 1995, thus continuing the long and proud history of the company for another generation. Stephenson completed his purchase of the company in February of 1996 and assumed the responsibilities of leading "The Nation's Oldest Caterpillar Dealer" into their tenth decade of service to the northern half of Georgia. Under Stephenson's leadership Yancey Bros. Co. has flourished as never before.

Sunbelt Power Systems has grown by leaps and bounds, with four new truck service centers and a new corporate headquarters facility being constructed since 1998. With parts and service locations located along every major interstate highway in Georgia, Sunbelt Power is providing the quality services and products the transportation industry expects from a Caterpillar dealer. In August of 2002, Sunbelt Power entered into a joint venture with Blanchard Machinery Company, the Caterpillar dealer in South Carolina, to open a truck engine parts and service facility alongside I-20 in Augusta. This new facility serves the large transportation hub in the Metro Augusta area, including areas of both Georgia and South Carolina.

In addition to growing the Earthmoving and Power Systems Divisions, three new division of Yancey Bros. Co. have been created during Stephenson's tenure. The company's Rental Services Division, know as The Cat Rental Store, was formed in 1997 and markets Caterpillar's full line of construction and building equipment to customers with daily, weekly and monthly rental options. Operating form fseven full-service locations, The Cat Rental Store also sells and rents a large menu of non-Caterpillar equipment, ranging from dump trucks, to aerial lifts, to light plants. In addition to their seven permanent locations, The Cat Rental Store has a force of Sales Representatives in the field visiting jobsites and construction projects marketing the division's products and services.

The second division created during Stephenson's tenure is Yancey Building Construction Products (BCP). Yancey BCP was started in 1999 and markets Caterpillar's line of compact construction equipment as well as Cat building construction equipment. These machines include backhoe loaders, skid steer loaders, mini-excavators and most other Cat equipment in the 100 horsepower and under range. Yancey BCP operates two sales, parts and service facilities in the Metro Atlanta area and has a Sales force calling on customer accounts and visiting jobsites throughout Georgia.

The newest operating division of Yancey Bros. Co., Yancey Agricultural Products , was established in 2002. When Caterpillar sold their ''Challanger'' line of agricultural tractors to Atlanta's AGCO Corporation in early 2002, Yancey Bros. Co. was granted the service territory of Georgia for AGCO's new ''Challenger" and "Fendt" lines of agricultural equipment. Operating from six existing Yancey locations, Yancey's AG Division handles equipment sales, parts and service for this ever-expanding line of equipment for Georgia's growing ag community.

A few examples of the Yancey's commitment is exhibited by the company providing 24-hour parts availability for customers, the maintaining of the largest rental fleet - over 500 pieces of equipment - of construction equipment in Georgia, and the recent opening of a Corporate Training Center on the Atlanta-Six Flags corporate campus. Further examples are the new Reconditioning Center and Fluid Analysis Laboratory that were constructed in 2000, The Cat Rental Store's temporary (two year) facility located inside the Atlantic Station jobsite in downtown Atlanta, and Yancey's series of maintenance and training seminars, Cat Care Meetings, that are attended by hundreds of customers each year. Add to these examples the company's fleet of over 200 parts and service vehicles at fifteen facilities, plus the 150 parts drop locations across the state, and you have the definition of a full service Caterpillar dealer.

Perhaps the most important sign of the company's growth under Stephenson's leadership was seen in December of 2002. Yancey Bros. Co. purchased certain operating assets of the former Caterpillar dealer in the southern half of the state, and once again became the exclusive Caterpillar equipment and power systems dealer for the entire state of Georgia. With branches now located in sixteen Georgia cities, Yancey Bros. Co. strives to fulfill its' mission of "Serve . . . Solve . . . Succeed" each and every day. The company's five divisions and their employees are dedicated to helping customers succeed in their business operations. Growth and customer satisfaction are Yancey's primary goals in conducting daily business.

A prime example of Stephenson's personal commitment to customers is his written authority given to every single employee . . . the authority to , "assure delivery of first-class defect-free products and services on time and as promised." Stephenson has even coined the theme of, "The Yancey Advantage... Our Commitment to Your Success," as the firm's way of identifying beneficial examples of their operational, service and personnel achievements.

Today, Goodloe Yancey III continues to serve the company as Chairman of the Board while Jim Stephenson provides leadership as President and Chief Executive Officer. Together, they continue the legacy started over 88 years ago by the brothers Yancey of providing outstanding customer service.

Quality products, superior customer service and unequaled experience have combined to make Yancey Bros. Co. and its various divisions the leader for ten dacades. In 1921, Mr. Goodloe proudly boasted, "Good equipment makes a good contractor better." From the company's earliest days to the present, Yancey Bros. Co. strives to provide the highest level of customer dedicated products and services available. Under Jim Stephenson, the company remains committed to learning more about their customers, offering equipment and support to keep up with their changing needs. The company's mission of ''Serve . . . Solve . . . Succeed'' is the primary goal of every Yancey Bros. Co. employee. If Yancey's customers aren't successfull . . . then Yancey won't be successful.

Harmon S. Eberhard, the President of Caterpillar, Inc., wrote to Mr. Goodloe in 1958 with these words. "Through these years, Yancey Bros. Co. has succeeded admirably in balancing its record of 'seniority' with an equally fine record of aggressiveness, vigor and growth -- qualities often associated with a younger organization. If I could define in a few words the job awaiting the future generations of Yancey Bros. Co., I believe it is just that: to continue to combine the wisdom that comes from long experience in this business with a willingness to change and progress in keeping with the challenge of the future's markets"." These words remain as true today as they did over fourty years ago.

"We are extremely proud of our past and the role we have played in building the Georgia we know today," states Chairman Goodloe H. Yancey III. "We want to keep our focus on the future. The challenges of the past have already been met. We are looking for ways to keep our customers productive and competitive into the next century."


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