Hoober Inc
Hoober, Inc. is an established, service oriented dealership offering Case IH and Kubota products. Hoober has been serving the Mid-Atlantic Region with farm, construction and landscaping equipment since 1941 and continues to be defined by `Excellence In Service`
Company details
Find locations served, office locations , manufacturers
- Business Type:
- Distributor
- Industry Type:
- Agriculture
- Market Focus:
- Regionally (various states or provinces)
- Year Founded:
- 1941
History
First Generation: C. B. HOOBER FARM EQUIPMENT
In 1941 Charles B. (Bud) Hoober signed an agreement to sell International Harvester farm equipment in Intercourse, Pennsylvania. For 10 years the business occupied the frame building on the North side of Route 340 directly across from the current location. In 1951 ‘CB’ built the block building next door and operated from it until 1965.
Second Generation: C. B. HOOBER & SON FARM EQUIPMENT
C. B. Hoober & Son Farm Equipment was formed in 1965, when Bud Hoober took his son, Charles Jr., (Charlie) as a partner. The same year the partnership purchased the empty SkeeCraft Boat Company building on the South side of Route 340 and moved the business to its present location.
During this same time Charlie and his wife Sally began raising their family. Their children, Chuck and Scott and Lauri, grew up around the shop and developed an appreciation for the business and for the agriculture industry. This too was the time C.B.’s grandson, Brad Hershey, was born and raised as part of a local farm family. After college, Chuck, Scott & Brad, each chose Hoober as their career and have taken positions of leadership and ownership in the family business.
Sally Hoober became part of the business as she and Charlie raised their family and juggled the many responsibilities of business leadership and family. Sally provided administrative leadership to the business and was an integral part of the company’s management team for many years (a fact she often denied).
In the early sixties IH dealerships in Gap, Honeybrook and other small towns near Intercourse, PA in Eastern Lancaster and Chester Counties went out of business. This opened up other markets for C. B. Hoober & Son. As farms surrounding Intercourse came up for sale, members of the expanding Amish community purchased the properties and Hoober chose to expand its territory to include the Cochranville and Honeybrook areas of Chester County.
While technology revolutionized American farming practices in the early 1970's, government policies opened up world markets to U.S. agricultural products. As farmers expanded their operations to meet the unprecedented demand, they needed larger and more dependable power & tillage equipment.
In 1975, C. B. Hoober & Son set their sights on “Big Farm Power & Equipment” to meet the needs of the increasing size of eastern farmers. They signed contracts to be the sole dealer for Steiger tractors and Krause tillage equipment in the states of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey. Hoober began to sell the larger equipment on the Eastern Shore.
C. B. HOOBER & SON, INC. and HOOBER EQUIPMENT INC
In order to tap the Eastern Shore market for 4-wheel drive tractors and large tillage equipment, the partnership purchased a tract of land in Sudlersville, Maryland. So that they could better manage the expected growth this action would generate, the business was incorporated under the name of C. B. Hoober & Son, Inc. in 1975.
In 1976, Daryl Peifer (C.B.’s son-in-law / Charlie’s brother-in-law), joined CB Hoober & Son as manager of the new Sudlersville store.
In 1977 IH introduced its revolutionary Axial Flow rotary combines. Eastern grain operators recognized the benefits of the simple rotary design backed by Hoober’s service. By 1980 C.B. Hoober & Son, Inc. became a major force in the eastern combine market.
In 1979 C.B. Hoober semi-retired and his son, Charles Jr., became president.
In the early 1980’s Hoober Equipment started exploring opportunities to expand and diversify its concentration on 4-wheel drive tractors and large tillage equipment. In 1982 Hoober purchased White Brothers Supply Co., an IH dealer in Middletown, Delaware; closed the Sudlersville, MD location; and consolidated the two businesses at the Middletown location as Hoober Equipment, Inc. (a subsidiary of C.B. Hoober & Son, Inc.). Daryl Peifer continued as manager of Hoober Equipment, Inc.
Third Generation: HOOBER, INC.
Bradley Hershey, Charlie’s nephew and grandson of C.B. Hoober, joined Hoober Equipment as a salesman in 1985.
In 1986 Charlie Hoober’s son, Chuck, joined the company after graduating from Messiah College. He began his employment as a salesman at the Intercourse store. When Daryl Peifer resigned to further his education in 1989, Chuck Hoober became manager of the Middletown store.
Charlie’s other son, Scott Hoober, joined the company as a salesman in 1991. In 2000, Scott became the Service Manager in Middletown, and he became the Middletown Store Manager in 2008.
In February 1996 C.B. Hoober & Son, Inc. purchased the assets of Inch Equipment in McAlisterville, PA. This move provided Hoober with a physical presence in the Central Pennsylvania marketplace. Brad Hershey moved from Middletown, DE to McAlisterville where today he continues to provide leadership as the McAlisterville Store Manager.
Satisfying a long held desire for a common identification for all its sites, C.B. Hoober & Son, Inc. and Hoober Equipment, Inc. were consolidated to Hoober, Inc. on January 1, 1998.
In July, 2002 Hoober, Inc. purchased the equipment division of Tull Brothers in Seaford, Delaware. This purchase enabled Hoober, Inc. to better service the equipment needs of farmers in the southern Delaware and Maryland area.
Daryl Peifer, Charlie’s brother-in-law (C.B.’s son-in-law) had returned to work for Hoober, Inc. in 1999, and in 2009 was named CEO of Hoober, Inc. Under Daryl’s leadership, Hoober developed a more formal, rigorous, and professional management and leadership team.
In March, 2011 Hoober acquired Carlisle Equipment/Chambersburg Farm Service in Chambersburg, PA. This acquisition further expanded Hoober’s presence in South Central Pennsylvania. Later that year Daryl Peifer resigned from Hoober to pursue other interests.
In 2012, Chuck and Scott invited Rod Lefever, their brother-in-law (married to their sister Lauri), to join Hoober, Inc. Today Scott, Rod, and Chuck are providing the third generation of strategic and operational leadership to Hoober; Chuck’s focus area is new and used sales; Scott’s focus area is operations including store management, parts and service; and Rod’s focus is general business support and administration.
In November, 2012 Hoober, Inc. acquired the assets of Leatherbury Equipment Co, in Cheriton, VA and moved the dealership to a new facility in Pocomoke, MD in January 2013. With this acquisition, Hoober became the authorized Case IH Ag Dealer for the entire Delmarva Peninsula.
In 2013, Hoober’s territory was further expanded to include all of MD, and much of VA through the asset acquisition of Cavalier International in Ashland, VA and Wakefield, VA, and the acquisition of the agriculture dealership assets of H.B. Duvall in Frederick, MD. These acquisitions advanced Hoober’s vision to be the preferred agricultural equipment dealer throughout the mid-Atlantic region.
A History of strong non-family managers and employees
(giving credit where credit is due)
Hoober’s history would be very incomplete without acknowledging the critical role and contribution of our valued employees and managers. Since 1941, many other individuals have joined the Hoober team, and it is because of the collective efforts of the team that Hoober has enjoyed success and become the company it is today. Too numerous to give proper credit to everyone, we wish to call out special appreciation to Tom Yohe, Dick Bomberger and Clarence Lefever who provided many years of leadership to Hoober as they worked alongside Charlie, Sally, and Daryl. We would also like to recognize the current leadership team, the management team at each of our store locations (Intercourse, Middletown, McAlisterville, Seaford, Chambersburg, Pocomoke, Ashland,