Cimarron Trailers Transfers Ownership to Folience

Cimarron is excited to announce that we have been acquired by Folience, an Iowa-based ESOP-holding company.

Cimarron Trailers owners Lynn and Michael Terry are retiring, leaving management of the company to long time employee, Ben Janssen, who becomes the company’s President.  Janssen was Director of Sales, Engineering, Purchasing and Marketing at Cimarron.  Tony Hackney will serve as Director of Operations.  Michael and Lynn will stay on for a short time to help with the transition.  Cimarron employs more than 135 hardworking people, who will become participants of the Folience Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP).

“I am very excited when I think about what Folience brings to Cimarron Trailers and our employees,” said Michael Terry.  Lynn agrees, “I see this as a future for the company which will result in continued growth and expansion.  And the best part is our employees get to become owners of Cimarron going forward.  It doesn’t get better!”

Incoming Presdent Ben Janssen is looking forward to the future growth and success of the company.

“Thankfully, Michael and Lynn have built Cimarron with a great set of core values,” Janssen said.  “One of those values is constant improvement and change.  So will there be changes, certainly, as long as those changes make our products, services and people better.  With that said, the foundation of Cimarron is solid.  We are committed to our employees, our community, our dealers and our customers.  The Terrys built an outstanding company, and I’m thankful they’ve found a great partner with Folience to secure the future of Cimarron Trailers for many successful years ahead.”

Tony Hackney agrees.  “Our people make the difference,” he said.  “It’s always been my goal to build the best trailers we possibly can, and we have great employees that make that happen.  The transition to an employee owned company is an incredible opportunity for our people.  My philosophy has always been to take care of our employees, they will build a quality product, and quality product takes care of our company.”

Hackney has been at Cimarron since day one, back when Michael Terry started the Cimarron Trailer dream.  Hackney has been in trailer manufacturing for over 40 years, the past 18 1/2 spent with the team building Cimarron into the company it is today.  He will serve as the Directors of Operations and will continue to guide trailer production.

Cimarron Trailer History

Cimarron Trailers was started in 2000 by Ronald Jackson and Michael Terry, as a division of CM Trailers and with the goal of

expanding that line of trailers into the aluminum trailer market.  It did that immediately, but Cimarron knew its future depended on designing a trailer that would set it apart from the competition and could be custom built on an assembly line.  That led to the innovative Norstar design, which consisted of 28 custom aluminum extrusions and new design features that simplified manufacturing. The Norstar was launched at the 2000 American Quarter Horse, World Show, and by Cimarron’s 6th Anniversary, there were more than 5,000 on the road.

In 2004 Michael and Lynn Terry became the sole owners of Cimarron Trailers, buying out their partners Ronald and Kay Jackson.  With the change of ownership, Cimarron Trailers broke away from CM Trailers to become an independent trailer manufacturer.

In 2009, Cimarron Trailers expanded its product line into the livestock and show animal industry with the “Showstar” and “Stierwalt” models.  The product line expanded further as customers brought new ideas to Cimarron.  Today, these models are approximately 40% of Cimarron’s production.

About Folience

Folience (www.folience.com) is a 100% ESOP-owned holding company that invests in profitable businesses with strong management continuity.  Folience traces its roots to the family-owned company formed in 1884 and its newspaper, the Cedar Rapids Gazette, started the prior year in 1883.  By 1986, the family began embracing employee-ownership and by 2012, the company was 100% employee owned.  Today, Folience’s approximately 506 employees work to uphold employee-ownership core values at seven independently managed companies.  Those companies include the Gazette newspaper and the Golden Triangle group of Iowa newspapers (The Fairfield Ledger, The Washington Evening Journal and the Mt. Pleasant News), Color Web Printers, Fusionfarm marketing agency, and Life Line Emergency Vehicles.  Folience is proud to welcome Cimarron Trailers and its 135 employees to the Folience family of companies.