THE BIGGEST SALE OF THE YEAR

There’s nothing normal about this year’s sales goals for the Pedigree team.

BY ETTIE BERNEKING

The Pedigree team has a huge goal ahead of them this year. The team needs to sell about 2,500 tractors and nearly 2,000 trailers.

To understand how big of a task that is, consider this—to hit that goal, Pedigree needs to sell about 50 trucks and 50 trailers each week. That’s a huge spike compared to what Pedigree normally sells each week and each year. But 2023 is not shaping up to be a normal year, so how did Pedigree get here?

Blame It On Covid

It all started in 2020 when COVID sent shock waves through nearly every industry. As Darrel Hopkins explains it, “Freight demand was incredibly strong, and our customers were asking for more and more capacity.” That was good news, but the bad news was that while freight demand was up, truck supply was way down. Manufacturers put customers like Prime on what’s called allocation. “They basically told everyone they’d be getting 60% of the trucks they normally ordered each year,” Darrel says. “That’s not enough trucks and trailers to replace the ones in o r eet let alone grow.

In a normal year, Prime’s philosophy is simple. It runs younger trucks to ensure the best equipment is out on the road. But from 2020 to 2022, Prime couldn’t get enough new trucks, so it kept its current eet aro n longer.

Prime t icall lls tractors from its eet after three or four years and trailers are removed after seven years. Those pieces of equipment go to Pedigree where they’re sold to smaller trucking companies and operators. But over the past three years, Prime kept those tr c s an trailers in its eet to ee up with the demand for freight. It worked. “We grew about 1,200 trucks in 2021/2022, and that was huge,” Darrel says. “Not many companies did that, but that has now put our Pedigree team in a tough position.”

Now that new trucks are hitting the market again and the demand for freight has levele o Prime wo l li e to lower the age of its eet an it nee s to sell those ol er tractors and trailers.

The Game Plan

Normally, selling used Prime tractors and trailers is easy. “When we started building up Pedigree in 2010, we created a massive wholesale dealer network, and we’ve been able to maintain those relationships with buyers even as we’ve grown and moved into the retail market,” says Rocky Carden, truck expert manager at Pedigree. “Buyers look to us because they know they’re going to get a great brand and a truck that will run. They also know we’ll take care of them if something breaks down.”

When it comes to name recognition, Pedigree and Prime have worked hard to make sure their names carry a lot of weight. It’s part of why the Pedigree team is selling a record number of trucks and trailers at retail pricing even when there’s an excess of inventory. “We’ve received word from several national and international analysts in the used trucking equipment space that Pedigree is the only dealer that has found a way to retail a large amount of trucks and trailers in today‘s market,” Darrel says. “Most dealers are going weeks without selling a truck or a trailer in this environment.”

Equipment sold through Pedigree is fi e an bro ght bac to near-factor condition. Tractors and trailers go through Prime’s body shop and paint shop to be repaired, cleaned and painted.

“When you drive down the road or stop at a big shipper, Prime equipment stands ...continued on page 21

By The Numbers

$5-7,000

Most Prime tractors sell for at least $5,000 more than the competition thanks to Prime’s focus on regular maintenance.

800

7 years

That’s how long trailers stay in the Pri e eet e ore heading to Pedigree.

That’s how many trucks Pedigree got to sell in 2021. That’s nearly half of its normal inventory. To meet the demand for freight, Prime held on to almost all of its tractors and trailers during COVID.

40 days t ta es a o t a s or the Pri e shops to get a tractor ready for Pedigree. Prime’s mechanics and paint shop work on every detail of the tra tor to ring it a to i e ne on ition

3-4 years out,” says Trailer Expert Manager Nathan Hopkins. “The trailers are clean, and the tractors are i erent colors an loo cool. You don’t see us broken down as often, and you see quality equipment.”

That’s how long most tractors stay in the Prime eet e ore the re moved to Pedigree.

As a result of all this work by Prime’s shopsandmaintenanceteams,Prime equipmentusuallysellsfor$5,000to $7,000 more than its competitor. That typically makes it easier for Pedigree to move tractors and trailers in its inventory. In fact, Rocky says most dealers joke around with him and call Prime a used truck factory—and Rocky has to agree with them.

“It’s true though,” Nathan says. “Prime manufacturesasteadysupplyofused e i ment beca se we r n a o ng eet. So a buyer knows when he calls myself or Rocky exactly what he is getting every time. He knows it’s going to be well maintained, and he knows how the specs are going to look on that piece of equipment.” n since Prime r ns a o ng eet that meansPedigreeisusuallysellingnewer tractors and trailers than competitors. In the aftermath of COVID, that’s not necessarily true, and that’s part of what is making Pe igree’s c rrent goal so iffic lt.

“Before COVID, we moved about 1,500 tractors and 1,400 trailers a year,” Rocky says. During COVID, when Prime was holding on to almost all of its tractors and trailers, Rocky and Nathan were begging for equipment to sell. Instead of the 1,500 tractors he was used to getting, Rocky only got about 700 tractors. “We sold them all,” he says. “Our inventory was 0.” Now that the demand for freight has returned to normal, Prime is rea to o oa tractors an trailers. “It’s a real challenge,” Nathan says, “and a big job.”

To hit that goal, Nathan and Rocky are blending the wholesale model with normal retail, and they’re using Prime’s strong bran to their benefit. en tho gh a goo ch n of their in entor is fi e- l s ears old, dealerships know Pedigree’s inventory is usually in better shape than other equipment on the market, even if it’s newer. To spread the word about the spike in inventory, the Pedigree marketing team is working full-throttle, and the Prime shop is also cranking away.

It typically takes two to three weeks for the Prime shop to get a trailer ready for Pedigree, and a tractor can take 40 days to prep. In some instances, Pedigree doesn’t have that kind of time right now, and it’s willing to sell some of its equipment as is so long as it doesn’t hurt the Prime brand.

With almost double the inventory it’s used to, Pedigree has its work cut out for them, but Rocky and Nathan are running full steam ahead. “Their jobs are as hard as they can be right now,” Darrel says. Luckily, the Prime brand goes a long way, and the company’s dedication to keeping quality equipment on the road makes those tractors and trailers more attractive to buyers even if they’re a bit long in the tooth..

Prime is a whole lot more than the freight it hauls down the road. One reason the company constantly ranks at the top of the industry is the culture it has built.

Life at Prime includes daily basketball games, raucous games of pickleball, annual Easter egg hunts, Christmas parties, 5K charity runs, picnics and so much more.

BY ETTIE BERNEKING

Wreaths Across America

Prime takes part in Wreaths Across America every December. Each year, Prime drivers are chosen to drive the honorary wreaths on several legs of the journey. Wreaths Across America coordinates wreathlaying ceremonies at more than 3,700 locations across the U.S.

2.7

More than 2.7 million veterans’ wreaths were placed at cemeteries across the U.S. in 2023.

Million Miles Club

Each year, Prime hosts a grand dinner to celebrate the drivers who have reached 1 million safe miles. Many drivers at the award ceremony have reached 2, 3 and even million safe miles. These drivers have gone years without an accident, and that is huge for Prime. For a company that ts safet first safe miles are worth celebrating.

7

It takes approximately years to reach million safe miles.

Anniversary Dinners

Once you hit your 10-year anniversary with Prime, you’ll get invited to the yearly anniversary dinner and award ceremony. To be fair, many team members have been with Prime for much longer than 10 years, which is something Prime prides itself on. This event is a chance to raise a glass to Prime’s great team.

596 That’s how many in-house folks celebrated their 10 years.