Shortline equipment often leads the way in innovation — as highlighted by the Shortline Legends coverage in this issue — and for mainline equipment dealers is often what can get a new customer in the door, leading to larger purchases. Mainline dealers, of course, are not the only distribution model. The dealers — RocPit Equipment, North Valley Equipment and DL Shortline share how their models have allowed their business to specialize, attract new customers and diversify the business of their owners (in 2 cases one of their equipment suppliers). 

Single-Branded Location

In May 2026, Maschio Gaspardo opened its 5th full-line store — the first of its kind in the U.S. — RocPit Equipment in Elburn, Ill. While the dealership exclusively sells Maschio Gaspardo equipment, it is independently owned by Dale Pitstick. 

In the press release announcing the new dealership, the manufacturer described the new store as an exclusively mono-brand dealership designed to give farmers access to the complete Maschio Gaspardo range across every stage of the agronomic cycle: tillage, seeding, fertilization, crop protection, green maintenance and haymaking. Specialized advice, product training, genuine spare parts, and a fully equipped service workshop are all brought together under one roof, supported by a team with deep knowledge of the brand’s products, ready to assist at every stage of farming operations.

Dale Pitstick (r) is a 6th generation corn and soybean farmer who became a Maschio Gaspardo dealer. He hired David Wexler (l) in 2026 as operations manager. Jenna Upchurch

While the store just opened in May, Pitstick started the business in 2020. Before he started selling equipment, he was a customer. Pitstick is a 6th-generation corn and soybean farmer in Kane County, Ill.

“In 2019, my uncle was driving a competitor’s tillage tool down the road and it tipped over,” he says. “I then started searching for something because I liked that style tool.” That search led him to Maschio Gaspardo North America (MGNA). 

“I went out there, looked at the equipment, picked one that I wanted, brought it back here, tested it, and then was like, ‘Alright, I want to buy this thing. Who’s my dealer?’ There was a dealer in Ohio or Nebraska. There was nobody close.”

With no support nearby, Pitstick asked what it would take to become a dealer. “Sign a couple pieces of paper and you’re a dealer,” he was told. And so he did, with the intention of just becoming a small dealer that could provide his own farm and the local community with equipment.

In 2024, Mirco Maschio, chairman of the Maschio Gaspardo board of directors, and his team came over from Italy and toured the area. Following the visit, he asked Pitstick to become a full line dealer. But, Pitstick wasn’t initially convinced. After about a year of back and forth between the two, with Maschio ultimately suggesting the store could be built on the farm, he was finally convinced and construction on the store began in November 2025. 

Pitstick says for the past 6 years, he was making a few hundred thousand dollars in sales each year. But, with the store now open, he has eyes set on being No. 1 in the world. 

“Illinois is the size of Spain,” Pitstick says. “Spain does $19 million in sales a year for Maschio equipment. We sell to the whole country. We can accommodate the whole country out of this location.”

Company Owned, Independently Run

Both DL Shortline in Illinois and North Valley Equipment in North Dakota are company-owned stores that also carry additional lines. The day-to-day operations are also managed at the store, not corporate headquarters. 

Another similarity — both had been independent dealerships that were acquired by the manufacturer. 

North Valley Equipment was purchased by Lockwood Manufacturing a Division of Crary Industries in the early 2000s. Prior to the acquisition the dealership had carried a number of lines, says general manager Darren Demers. 

Inside RocPit Equipment’s showroom is a sleek, European style conference room, with full Maschio Gaspardo branding on display. Jenna Upchurch

Today, in addition to the Lockwood brand, North Valley carries 4 other brands (with Bad Boy being the newest). Demers would like to see the number of lines grow, and they are currently finalizing agreements with a couple other manufacturers.  

“As store manager, I’d like to see that because it only improves our customer base and foot traffic,” he says, adding it will help the dealership attract the whole potato customer base in the region. 

North Valley is currently building a new facility on the south side of its property, which Demers says is attracting attention for manufacturers both regionally and internationally. The current facility was built in the 1970s, he says, as a lumberyard. “It was never built with the intention of selling farm equipment, much less potatoes,” he says. “It’s time to upgrade and make a facility that is conducive to receive, work on and sell potato equipment out of.”

Similarly, DL Shortline was an existing dealership (Linco-Precision) that was acquired by Duo Lift in August 2025. Craig Harthoorn, whose industry experience includes positions at H&S Mfg., Kinze Mfg., Alamo Group and Brokaw Supply, as well as time in dealer and retail channels with the Sinclair Tractor organization, came on board as the general manager for the dealership. 

In addition to the dealership, the Hellbush family, which owns Duo Lift, also owns Busch Equipment, a farm equipment distributor. 

In the first year, Harthoorn says they spent a lot of time getting processes and policies in place. Going in, he knew that taking on a new business in the midst of an ag economic downturn would present its fair share of challenges. 

“We know long-term this will be a great opportunity for DL Shortline,” Harthoorn says. “We’ve already seen some great things happen. We see more of that happening down the road. Fortunately for us, we’re fairly diversified and have a broad cross section of a customer base.”

Diversified Product Lines 

DL Shortline and North Valley added Bad Boy mowers in the last year, and both Harthoorn and Demers say the line is attracting a new customer base. 

Demers says his dealership added the mower line in June 2026 and so far the reception has been positive. DL Shortline added the line in March 2026, and Harthoorn says the business was fairly strong out of the gate. 

Both dealers say the addition of a mower brand has increased foot traffic, both from existing customers and new customers. “We are bringing in that additional foot traffic that I was looking for because it doesn’t hurt to diversify when you’re only in one game like potatoes,” Demers says.

North Valley Equipment, a Grafton, N.D. dealer specializing in potato equipment, is in the early stages of building a new facility on the north end of its property. The original store (inset) was built as a lumber yard. North Valley Equipment

Harthoorn says that despite being located off I-39 and not too far from Bloomington, Peoria and Streator, Ill., there wasn’t a big competitive OPE presence in the area. But, the consumer customer base was there.

“We knew we had an opportunity there,” he says. “And I have had a little bit of experience with Bad Boy in the past. One of my friends is a dealer and I’ve known Bad Boy has a very good quality product.”

North Valley Equipment also recently added AVR, a Belgian potato equipment manufacturer. While the dealership hadn’t received any inventory as of July, Demers expected the first shipment by mid- to late-August. 

Since North Valley is owned by Lockwood, when evaluating product lines to add, Demers says he looks to see what products could fill holes in the Lockwood lineup, such as self-propelled harvesters. AVR fills that void, he says. The Belgian company also offers storage equipment. 

Taking on a new brand like AVR involves some risk, as it’s a new product for North Valley’s market that hasn’t been tested out yet. But, Demers says AVR has been good to work with as they introduce the new line. 

“There’s a conservative approach,” he says. “They don’t force equipment down our throats. They’re willing to work with us to introduce their product lines and don’t demand we purchase a bunch of equipment we’re not sure is going to take off.” 

DL Shortline has also added Raven and Worksaver, as well as adding Akron grain bagging equipment. Harthoorn says the addition of Worksaver attachments complements the Bad Boy product line.

DL Shortline in El Paso, Ill., branched out into the outdoor power equipment space in March 2026 when it added Bad Boy to its line up. North Valley Equipment in Grafton, N.D., added the mower brand as well in June 2026. DL Shortline

DL Shortline also has a truck equipment business that helps balance out the ups and down of the ag market.

“We have a custom truck upfitting business where we do quite a bit of work for commercial municipalities and fertilizer retailers,” Harthoorn says. “The truck shop has been fairly strong, so that certainly helps us.”

Pitstick says he’s had other brands approach him about carrying their line, but so far he hasn’t added anything. When he is approached, he first weighs whether the brand competes with any of the Maschio Gaspardo equipment he’s already selling. He also takes it to his sales team to ask if they’ve got any interest in it. “Most of the time, they say no,” he says. 

Serving a Niche Market

With the exception of the Bad Boy line, North Valley Equipment is serving a niche customer base. “Potato equipment is a very specialized world and it’s very narrow,” Demers says. 

In addition to the pressure weather plays into the potato market, the industry also never knows where consumption will be in terms of French fries and potato chips and that ultimately impacts growers profitability and equipment purchase decisions, he adds. 

Shortline manufacturer Duo Lift acquired Linco-Precision in 2025, re-branding the dealership as DL Shortline. In addition to precision products, the dealership carries a number of shortline brands and truck equipment. DL Shortline

“With us being specialized and concentrated on potatoes, people appreciate the fact that between myself and the employees I have here, there’s a lot of knowledge,” Demers says. 

“There’s a lot of potato experience, and customers appreciate that we are specialized. We’re not drifting in the combines or anything like that. We specialize in the potato specialized markets.”

As the three dealerships evolve and grow, each is committed to serving farm customers in a way that the major line ag equipment dealerships aren’t. Their specialized focus provides deep product knowledge that helps them move equipment.