Phelps Implement to merge with Van Wall

A John Deere implement group that started in Grundy Center four decades ago and has since expanded to three other locations will merge with Van Wall, the largest agricultural equipment company in Iowa, after an official announcement to employees on Friday.
           
The properties of Phelps Implement, with dealerships in Grundy Center, Greene, Hubbard and Hampton, will increase the number of Van Wall holdings to 25, making it one of the 10 largest groups in North America according to the most recently available data. Larry Phelps purchased a 50 percent stake in the Rewerts Implement in 1971, bought the remaining shares in 1979 and changed the name to Phelps, and he later passed management operations on to his son Randy and son-in-law Randy Runge. The fact that Phelps weathered the farm crisis of the 1980s, one of the worst periods in the history of agriculture, still brings a sense of pride to its founder.
           
“That was a major accomplishment. Dealers right and left were failing as well as the farmers themselves, and we survived that,” the elder Phelps said.
 
Phelps expanded into Greene in 1996, Hampton in 2003 and Hubbard in 2010, and it now has 28 employees according to the company website. The group also bought dealerships in Reinbeck and Wellsburg before closing them down. Van Wall operates 18 locations in Iowa, the nearest of which are in Marshalltown, Story City and Toledo, and employs 550 people total across four states.
 
“If you look at their locations, and you look at ours, we’re contiguous on three fronts. It’s just a natural match for us to join together,” Van Wall Owner and CEO Don Van Houweling said. “I’ve known Randy Runge for many years, and I know what an outstanding job he and his people do… We’re both excited about it.” 
 
Larry and Randy Phelps have sold their shares of the company to Runge, who will become a partner in Van Wall, and the elder Mr. Phelps, 80, will retire from the business. He had previously refused multiple offers to merge because, as he said it, “I didn’t want a partner.” 
 
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