By TIM THORNBERRY
Kentucky Correspondent

OWENTON, Ky. — Monty Craigmyle was raised on a dairy farm and has lived his entire life in Owen County, Ky., the same as the past five generations of his family. But he has connections across the country and throughout the world.

Craigmyle isn’t an international financier, or a jet pilot or an international secret agent: He sells tractors.

It is the small business his uncle and father helped him enter in 1992, which has turned into a company that has seen impressive growth in a fairly short period of time.

“We’ve grown dramatically. We’ve been very blessed,” he said. “We mostly handle later models, newer equipment and primarily tractors from 70- to 300-horse.”

Craigmyle said the upcoming National Farm Machinery Show in Louisville is the only event of its type that he attends and it’s more about client relationships than selling merchandise.

“It’s about customer relations. We see a lot of old faces and meet new people and have made a lot of contacts there,” he said.
It is that manner of meeting people and seeing old friends that has helped the company grow, said Craigmyle, who has a simple philosophy of getting business: “The easiest way to sell is to beat everyone on price.

“Most of our global contacts have come from relations we’ve had with others; people we’ve met through sales and auctions. We have done some international relations through the Internet, but most of our contacts are just people we have met over time.”

Craigmyle has branched out into some construction equipment, a venture that has been good even though the industry has been slow in this down economy. He said the area in which he lives has had a tough time of supporting equipment dealers in the past, a situation that has caused his company to reach into other states and other countries.

That move has helped the company grow from selling a few tractors its first year to around 400 annually, now. Craigmyle has seen slow times, but business has been exceptionally good the last two years. He gives the credit first and foremost to the Lord, then his family who has supported him, he said.

For more information about Craigmyle Farm Equipment, visit its website at http://craigmylefarmeq.com or call 502-484-5560.