DISTRIBUTOR NEWS
www.outdoorpowerequipment.com OUTDOOR POWER EQUIPMENT FEBRUARY 2016 31
Stihl Inc. celebrates opening
of new Midwest Stihl location
Stihl Inc. recently celebrated the grand opening of its new
Midwest Stihl location in the Village of Cottage Grove, Wis. In
January 2015, Stihl Inc. announced that it would relocate the
operations of Mississippi Valley Stihl of Peoria, Ill., and Midwest
Stihl Inc., of Hayward, Wis., to establish a new single distribution
site. Completed in October, after only six months of construction,
the new 65,750-square-foot facility demonstrates the company's
continued investment to improve overall operations and support
dealer growth in the mid-northern region of the U.S.
"We are extremely pleased to celebrate the opening of this new
distribution location because it represents our continued focus
on serving our dealers and customers more efficiently," said Stihl
Inc.'s Fred Whyte, who attended the ceremony.
Stihl selected the Village of Cottage Grove for its access to the
I-90 and I-94 corridors that are main routes for deliveries to Stihl
dealers.
In addition to a central location, the new facility was designed
to drive efficiencies to further enhance dealer support and
responsiveness. The new facility includes expanded warehouse
capabilities with efficient racking and storage systems, improved
pick and pack processes that reduce errors and increase
productivity, and nine loading doors to handle inbound/
outbound freight. As a result, Midwest Stihl will be able to provide
one-day shipping service to most of the 1,000 servicing dealers in
the region. Additionally, Midwest Stihl can now offer enhanced
training and technical services capabilities to dealers in its new
indoor/outdoor training facility and state-of-the-art workshop.
Stihl Inc. distributes its products across the U.S. through a two-
tiered system, selling products through a network of independent
distributors and company-owned branches. Distributors and
branches, in turn, sell products to authorized Stihl servicing
dealers nationwide.
The new Midwest Stihl facility occupies almost 10 acres and
employs approximately 40 employees, bringing 10 new jobs to the
area. Midwest Stihl began service to dealers in Iowa and Illinois
in November and officially started servicing the remainder of
the territory, including Minnesota, Wisconsin and the Upper
Peninsula of Michigan, on February 1.
Pictured in front of Midwest Stihl's new location, from left to right, are as follows: Joe Hickey, branch manager, Midwest Stihl; Fred Whyte, former
president and current chairman of the board, Stihl Inc.; Bjoern Fischer, president, Stihl Inc.; and Murray Bishop, manager of export and logistics, Stihl Inc.
