I recently spent the day at Implement Sales, a leading equipment distributor in the Southeast, headquartered in Between, Ga. Kris Yancey, the owner & operator of Implement Sales, gave me a tour of the new facility where I spent the day learning about their impressive operations.

At first glance, Implement Sales may look like any other regional equipment distributor — a clean new facility, trucks with loaded trailers and a tidy lineup of attachments out back. But behind the doors, this family-run operation is working hard to be one of the most focused and modern distribution models in the ag and construction markets today. 

Kris Yancey, Owner & Operator – Implement Sales

Implement Sales carries an extensive selection of attachments and implements for skid-steers, excavators, telehandlers, tractors, side-by-sides and more. It has 40 companies in its portfolio and the offerings range from ag to light construction equipment. Implement Sales is actively distributing equipment throughout 8 states in the Southeastern part of the U.S. This territory is worked by 4 territory managers which includes: North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee and Mississippi. 

Serving the Ag Industry Since the 1950s

Implement sales was founded in 1956 and has undergone several leadership and ownership changes since. Yancey began his career in the business at age 23, working for his father-in-law, Mitch Elkins, shortly before Elkins and industry veteran Dick Price of Price Brothers (Wichita, Kan.) acquired the company. 

With no formal training, Yancey started his career in sales by hitting the road with only a credit card, pager, a 6-inch thick black book, an atlas and a stack of VHS training tapes. “I’d sit in my basement for hours trying to figure out what all this stuff did,” Yancey says. “I didn’t know ag or construction, but I knew how to show up.” 

He spent endless hours learning everything he could about the industry. His signature line became, “Hi, I’m Kris Yancey with Implement Sales, and I’m here to sell you something,” an approach that surprisingly worked quite well. 

That early, boots-on-the-ground approach shaped what has become Implement Sale’s culture: get face-to-face with the dealers, know the equipment and never stop learning. 

A New Company Vision

After years of grinding on the road with Implement Sales, Yancey took a brief stint to work at Yancey CAT (no relation, despite the last name), where he gained valuable experience working in a larger corporate environment with access to more sophisticated tools and approaches to go to market and run a sales team. Yancey took time to soak everything in and learn all he could about the company. “They were really smart and knew how to manage a team,” he says.

“We didn’t leave what brought us to the dance, we brought on and added to it,” he said of making the switch. 

Kris Yancey, Owner & Operator – Implement Sales

While working at CAT, Yancey saw a hole in the industry he knew he could fill one day. He noticed that many of the dealers to whom he would sell construction equipment also owned a farm and would inquire about ag equipment, however, CAT did not have anything to fill this void. Fast forward to 2018, when the industry was undergoing many changes. Yancey told Elkins he wanted to buy him and Dick Price out of the company. They worked on the deal throughout 2018, and Yancey took ownership of the business on Jan. 1. 2019. 

Before Yancey took over, Implement Sales was heavily ag-focused, with 80% of its business on the agricultural side. In the past few years, he has shifted the focus to be closer to 40/60% ag and light construction, as he thought the ag market would exit this model, which it has throughout the years. 

By targeting light construction equipment and rental markets, Implement Sales tapped into a network of customers who were underserved by traditional OEMs. From mini-excavators to skid steers to telehandlers and hydraulics, the company began stocking equipment that CAT, Deere and other major brands couldn’t supply to their ag customers. 

Implement Sales Headquarters, Between, Ga.

This strategic move proved to be key.  Since Yancey and his wife, Brittany, purchased the company in 2019, it has experienced exponential growth. The company went from doing $6.5 million a year to over $20 million in 2023. In 2024, it saw a 24% jump, and 2025 is pacing toward a 28% increase. He knew  if the company was going to grow, the majority of the growth would have to be on the construction side. Yancey credits a lot of this growth to diversification — and to his faith. 

The Power of Hustle

Implement Sales’ playbook puts a large emphasis on hustle. While many sales reps in the industry rely on phone calls and inbound interest, Yancey’s team takes a different approach. The company’s 4 territory managers are on the road visiting dealers Monday through Friday, each driving a three-quarter-ton Duramax diesel truck and pulling trailers loaded with new equipment to show dealers. Each truck is GPS-tracked, and reps are expected to visit 4-6 dealers daily. These trailers are decked out with Danuser attachments, one of Implement Sales’ newest partners. 

“There are not a lot of people in careers who would like to advance their knowledge; there are a lot of people who get into careers and want to rot away,” Yancey says. 

Most people, including the majority of sales guys, take the path of least resistance. This is something Yancey knew from the when he first took over the company in 2019. He told the sales team there would be some significant changes. Changes included adding a website and online presence, enforcing a dealer-visit schedule and diversifying the company’s product mix — because they were going to become the state-of-the-art distribution company of the Southeast. 

 “The industry doesn’t need us, it wants us. So we have to be the best of the best,” says Yancey. He explains that his team has to act as consultants, knowing the machines better than anyone. Inside their new facility, built in 2022, more than $4 million in equipment inventory sits ready to ship. Dealers don’t want to stock anymore, so Implement Sales does it for them, delivering faster quotes and quick delivery. Yancey knows if his team doesn’t have the inventory in stock, they will ultimately lose business. In the future, if a company like this is going to succeed and continue to grow, Yancey believes they will have to increase their inventory substantially. He hopes to eventually double his current inventory as they evolve. 

“We just don’t run into our competitors,” Yancey says. “I don’t think there are a lot of guys traveling. I think they’re hoping something happens. We’re out there making it happen.” 

“We have quoted over $34 million in equipment in the last 6-month span, and that’s because we’re present,” said Yancey. He notes his team is visible throughout the Southeast, but that this presence costs money.

Implement Sales Headquarters, Between, Ga.

Yancey’s reps are paid on a simple commission model — the same model that Yancey started on over 2 decades ago. The company covers the trucks, trailers, fuel, equipment and marketing. “He explains, “My guys tell me, even if I doubled the commission, they wouldn’t do this job if they had to cover the costs themselves. That’s freeing to them their job is to sell, mine is to equip them.” 

Yancey’s team is positioned to move fast and close the deal because they have already done the necessary groundwork. 

Branding: A Necessity for Success

The company’s weekly dealer email now reaches over 7,000 recipients. The website, which Yancey says he worked endlessly to perfect, features a dealer portal, detailed tracking tools and all the product data that buyers need to make informed decisions. Every click and search is monitored to best serve their customers. “We’re creating demand from scratch every single day,” Yancey says. “People don’t understand how much work that takes.” 

Manufacturers need to invest in brand visibility before the distributor shows up. “We’re not magicians. Coke and Ford still advertise every day. You have to stay top of mind. There has to be a buying experience that happens before our trailer pulls into the dealer’s lot.” 

The Future of Distribution

Yancey’s goal is to eventually grow his sales team from 4 to 6 reps covering the same territory, shrinking coverage areas per rep while increasing volume. “As we shrink their territory, each rep has to travel less and makes the same, or more. That’s where I really want us to be.” 

Yancey is a member of a tight-knit group, along with 5 other non-competitive distributors throughout the U.S.; they meet annually to discuss their wins, losses and everything in between in hopes of helping each other succeed. During these meetings, they share their financial data, business models and more, and they all take advice from one another. If one company has a win, the rest of the companies will try to implement a similar strategy. 

Implement Sales lives on the crumbs, the small opportunities that bigger players overlook. “We don’t want a piece of the pie,” Yancey says. “The pie comes with strings...There is a tremendous amount of business to be picked up from these crumbs.” 

Whether it’s expanding product lines, increasing inventory levels or adopting new models, the company continues to look to the future while staying true to its roots. Even with the pressure, Yancey says the opportunity is still out there for those willing to work for it. “You wake up every morning and say, ‘I’m going to start earlier, stay later, and hope it works.’  That’s the job. That’s the industry. And we love it.”