(Green Bay, Wisconsin – November 2, 2017) – Trudell Holdings, parent company of Trudell Trailer Sales, has announced its acquisition of majority ownership of Northeast Great Dane with anticipated closing on the transaction to happen December 1, 2017. Certain members of management of Northeast Great Dane, including current President John Gendelman and his executive team of Sean Novick, Gerry Newcomb and Frank Korn will have a significant ownership interest in Northeast Great Dane, LLC post-closing. Mr. Gendelman will continue to serve as president of Northeast Great Dane, LLC.
With locations in Auburn, Massachusetts, Syracuse, New York, Buffalo, New York, Florida, New York, and Hillsborough, New Jersey, Northeast Great Dane has been the area’s Great Dane full-service dealership since 1973. The firm serves the Mid-Atlantic and New England regions and specializes in new and used trailer sales, aftermarket truck and trailer parts, graphic design and installation, and trailer service capabilities including mobile service.
“The acquisition gives us the opportunity to expand our Great Dane trailer dealership business. With the five Trudell Trailer Sales locations and adding the five Northeast Great Dane locations we are now able to further enhance our collective customers’ experiences from the Upper Midwest to New England. Tom Leuner and John Gendelman have built an organization with an outstanding reputation and a high degree of respect within the industry. Having known John for more than 20 years, I am looking forward to working with him and the Northeast Great Dane team moving forward,” said Dennis Van Lannen, CEO/Owner of Trudell Holdings.
“This is very exciting news. Great Dane has a world-class dealer network and I am proud to see two great organizations merge to fortify the future of our distribution,” said Rob Ulsh, vice president of Dealer and International Sales for Great Dane. “For many years, Trudell Trailers and Northeast Great Dane have been highly successful as independent representatives of our brand and I look forward to seeing what the two companies will do together.”
Chris Hammond, executive vice president of Sales for Great Dane added, “Our key partners at Trudell Trailers and Northeast Great Dane will become Great Dane’s largest independent dealer group covering two strategic regions for Great Dane. Trudell is a leader in the Midwest and Northeast is a leader in the North East and we look forward to their continued success.
By bringing together strong management teams to work alongside the Great Dane corporate team I see a very bright future as these organizations champion the needs of our customers together.”
Northeast Great Dane is the sixth acquisition Trudell has made in the past 10 years. One hundred sixty-five people are employed at the Northeast Great Dane locations. No job losses will result from the acquisition, which brings total employment to 400 within the Trudell Holdings businesses.
“Northeast Great Dane has always felt like a family-owned business,” commented Gendelman. “First, I would like to thank Joe Leuner for putting faith in me and giving me my start in the industry and introducing me into the Leuner family. Secondly, I thank Tom Leuner for making me a successful part of Northeast Great Dane and for being a mentor and great friend for more than 40 years.
Now I’m looking forward to joining another family. I have known the Trudell organization for many years and look forward to working closely with Dennis and his team as we continue to build on our success and growth over the coming years. Trudell and Northeast Great Dane have run very similar businesses, and together we will grow and prosper even more for the good of our dearly-cherished employees, customers and vendor partners. Our goal will remain the same – BE THE BEST IN THE BUSINESS.”
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Great Dane is the leading manufacturer of high-performance commercial transportation equipment, including dry and refrigerated trailers and truck bodies, as well as steel, aluminum and combo platform trailers. Great Dane has a storied history in the commercial trucking industry and is a driving force in trailer technology, innovation, quality and customer service. Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, and with additional corporate offices in Savannah, Georgia, Great Dane has manufacturing plants strategically located throughout the United States. The company’s network of corporate-owned branches, full-line independent dealers and parts-only independent dealers offers a broad range of distribution points for new and used trailers as well as aftermarket services across North and South America. Visit Great Dane online at greatdane.com.
About Trudell Holdings
Trudell Trailer Sales is the authorized dealership for new Great Dane® semi-trailers for Wisconsin, Upper and Western Michigan, and Minnesota. They provide sales and rentals/leasing of new and used dry vans, flatbeds, refrigerated trailers, storage trailers, and storage containers. The company also provides repair, maintenance and painting services, and heavy-duty aftermarket parts for the trucking industry. Along with its operations in Green Bay, Wisconsin, the company has full-service facilities in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Grand Rapids, Michigan, and a service facility in Eagan, Minnesota.
In addition to Trudell Trailer Sales, Trudell Holdings includes Wisconsin Bus Sales, LLC, a full line BlueBird® school bus distributor located in Deforest, Wisconsin, Western Railcar Repair, an independent railcar repair facility in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and Trudell Industrial Finishing, a coatings company specializing in commercial and industrial applications, based in De Pere, Wisconsin.
