SPOTLIGHT DEALER
By Gregg Wartgow
The Ph.D. of Propane
Dealer Mike Halloran talks propane cylinders with interested attendees at the August 2016 Chicago Area Clean Cities Coalition event.
Mike Halloran saw the potential of propane more than five years ago. Now it represents nearly a third of his commercial mower sales.
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ealer Mike Halloran was one of several experts who presented at a propane educational event coordinated by the Chicago Area Clean Cities Coalition last summer. He laid out the reasons why a park district or landscape company would want to make the switch to propane mowers. Clay Johnson of Metro Lawn Propane Conversions took to the podium after Halloran. “My presentation is going to go quickly,” Johnson said, “because Mike just covered everything perfectly.” Halloran doesn’t just sell propane mowers—he has been helping to create demand for them through his commitment to customer education. He’s the
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owner of Halloran Power Equipment in Palatine, IL. His wife, Jill, is the owner of Mowerworks in nearby Barrington. Aside from being owned by a Halloran, the two stores share a lot in common. For one, they take the commercial market very seriously. Secondly, propanepowered mowers are big business. “Roughly 30% of our commercial mower sales are now propane, and half of that is conversions,” Halloran points out. It took a while for the business to build. “Gravely offered a propane mower many years ago,” Halloran continues. “But in those early days, the mower had a Generac engine. Parts and support were hard to come by, so it never took
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off.” That’s a different story today. Gas engine conversion kits have become common, and Kohler even offers engines specifically designed for propane fuel. Gravely remains Halloran’s top commercial mower line—especially with respect to propane. The two stores also sell Bob-Cat and Scag commercial mowers, RedMax handheld equipment, and Ariens and Simplicity consumer mowers. The Palatine store also carries Husqvarna, while the Barrington store has Stihl and Toro (consumer). Even though the two stores are a mere 10 miles apart, they only experience 15-20% customer overlap. Palatine is more commercially focused (80%)
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2/27/17 12:45 PM