Page 15 - Peterson 85 Years and Going Strong

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ACQUISITIONS GAINING GROUND THE PETERSON WAY
It was a bright August morning in 2003. Allan Emmons was standing out by the railroad spur behind Peterson’s Eugene store, looking at all the new Cat equipment and grinning from ear to ear. Machines were lined up on railcars as far as the eye could see.The old Papé territory (Cat’s former dealer) was now
officially Peterson Machinery Co. New signage was up. Peterson executives were out visiting jobsites. Custom- ers were talking. The place was abuzz.
Taking risks has always been a big part of Peterson’s culture. And 2002–03 was full of them. It was a time of change and growth: restructuring with three new company presidents under a CEO; stepping over the border into a new state; and settling into a territory where the former owner was now the competition. And all with Caterpillar’s blessing, indeed—at their request. Papé had been heavily invested in other businesses to fill in the gap for Oregon’s slumping timber industry, which accounted for 70 percent of their market. But then they bought two John Deere franchises with competing product lines and Cat had finally had enough.
In May 2002, Caterpillar approached Peterson. “It was a complete surprise to us,” explains Duane Doyle Sr., Peterson’s owner and CEO. “We had no designs on Oregon whatsoever. When Caterpillar approached us about assuming the territory, they had already been at the negotiating table for a year. By the time we got involved, it took another whole year.” At several points, it seemed like the deal would fold. Even up to the last minute. But then it didn’t.
On July 1, 2003, Peterson Machinery Co. opened its doors to the southern portion of Oregon and the north- ernmost reaches of California. Ernie Fierro, PMCo president at the time, remembers it well. “One of the most successful things we did upfront was to order fifty machines even before Peterson officially became the new Oregon Cat dealer. The construction community was shocked when Eugene’s rail yard was packed with
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