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Meet Tri-State Bobcat: Our Journey, Values, and Vision

Jun. 10 2024 About Us By Tri-State Bobcat

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Meet Tri-State Bobcat: Our Journey, Values, and Vision

Tri-State Bobcat, a family-owned and operated company, has been in business for more than 40 years and is still growing, with a new St. Croix Falls location added in 2023. Since 1983, it has been one of the premier Bobcat dealers in the United States. In addition to Bobcat, the dealership features Toro, Stihl, Bandit, Avant, Fecon, Wacker Neuson, Kage, Green Climber, Virnig, BOMAG and RedMax lines of equipment. The company serves a wide range of markets including construction, landscaping, grounds and property maintenance, agriculture, tree care, land clearing and erosion control. Tri-State Bobcat currently has locations in Burnsville, Hudson, Little Canada, and St. Croix Falls.

Bobcat Rentals

Tri-State Bobcat's owner, Bill Quirk, has worked in the construction equipment business for a half-century, starting with a Case equipment dealership in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area for 10 years. In March 1983, he purchased the Bobcat territory and assets from an existing dealership and relaunched as Tri-State Bobcat. Fifteen years later, his son, Jon, joined him as a partner at Tri-State Bobcat. The company, now a two-generation family-owned business, has evolved over time. 

Choosing Bobcat as the foundational brand proved to be the right decision. Tri-State Bobcat has since added a dozen other market-leading pieces of compact and hand-held equipment brands to their offerings, demonstrating their commitment to diversifying and catering to a wide spectrum of audiences in the compact equipment industry.

"In 2008, the company expanded on its industry-leading top brands to create the Tri-State Bobcat Bundle, aiming to enhance offerings for all customers," said Quirk. "The goal was to avoid dependence on any single industry, by expanding the base to include consumers, construction and rental customers.”

    Tri-State Bobcat's showroom features all product lines in the Tri-State Bobcat bundle, carefully intertwined to create a seamless experience for customers who often find themselves making purchases across all brands. One relatively new addition to the Tri-State Bobcat lineup is BOMAG, which manufactures rollers, tampers and other compaction machinery. Tri-State Bobcat was impressed with the compact equipment BOMAG offered, and fortunately, it aligned perfectly with the rest of the brands they carry. This decision has turned out to be immensely successful for all their stores. 

When Tri-State Bobcat opened over 40 years ago, selling equipment was the primary goal. However, the company has evolved over time to include a rental strategy, with the rent-to-rent model becoming its principal objective. Trị-State Bobcat rents all of their brands. Building a substantial rental fleet didn't occur overnight, as this took over a decade to build, and they continue to add to it regularly. 

"Equipment rental continues to grow every year," he said. "Every year the growth is in the low double digits. It's easy to see why. With the cost of acquiring a piece of equipment continuing to rise, renting the piece instead makes sense. When you want to undertake a project that requires a specialty machine, you don’t want to go out and buy it. If you have someone you can call that has a late-model, good-running machine for rent, you don’t have to own it.”

    The large rental fleet also helped Tri-State Bobcat overcome challenges during the COVID economy, as manufacturers fell behind on delivering parts and equipment. Customers were well-served by being able to rent a machine.

The company's willingness to adapt and flex as necessary to maintain its momentum in the marketplace is demonstrated by its decision to get out of the trucking business. "After sparking so much growth, we couldn't adequately cover our marketplace using inside trucking," said Quirk. "We aligned ourselves with a great trucking company, Dick's Valley Service out of Apple Valley. They provide prompt and excellent service whether we need one truck that day or 10." 

The company has focused on offering state-of-the-art facilities and expanding its product line to become the place to go for their customers' compact equipment needs, including: 

  • Five convenient locations; 

  • Huge showrooms; 

  • Expanded parts departments; 

  • More service bays;

  • Large yards full of new, used and rental equipment.

The decision was made in 2013 to upgrade all the facilities. "We changed our business model," he explained. "We wanted larger properties with larger black-top parking lots, brightly-lit, remodeled showrooms and clean bathrooms. Our buildings now really are top-notch," said Quirk. "We have two dedicated employees who work full time just maintaining the buildings. The facilities are something that we pride ourselves on." 

Tri-State Bobcat values the longevity and dedication of its staff. Their knowledgeable, experienced and friendly team is committed to providing the best customer service and product support in the industry; they embody exceptional service. 

In addition to its four locations, Tri-State Bobcat acquired Manke's Outdoor Equipment in Owatonna, Minnesota. This was a family-owned Toro dealership. "We were looking to expand geographically. Like us, it was a family-owned company and the family wanted to retire," said Quirk. 

40+ years and counting as a premier Bobcat Dealer in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The company's dedicated founders are not only devoted to the business' long-term success but also to ensuring that Tri-State Bobcat continues to thrive in the future.