Folience, a Cedar Rapids-based ESOP-owned holding company, recently acquired Cimarron Trailers, an aluminum trailer manufacturer based in Chickasha OK.
“Cimarron Trailers has everything we look for when bringing a new company into the Folience family,” said CEO Daniel Goldstein. “It is a successful company with highly competent management, a dedicated workforce, a superior product, and in partnering with Folience, it is well-poised to continue its success and to grow.”
Cimarron owners Lynn and Michael Terry are retiring, leaving management of the company to long-time Cimarron employee, Ben Janssen, who becomes the company’s president. Tony Hackney joins him as director of operations. Janssen was director of sales, engineering, purchasing and marketing at Cimarron.
The Terrys will stay on for a short time to help the transition, Folience said. Cimarron employs 135 people, 120 permanent and 15 temporary. The permanent employees 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,” Michael Terry said.
His wife agreed: “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 be owners of Cimarron going forward. It doesn’t get any better.”
Ronald Jackson and Michael Terry started Cimarron in 2000 as a division of CM Trailers, with the goal of expanding that line of trailers into the aluminum trailer market, which they did, but the company’s long-term goal was to design a trailer that sets it apart from the competition and could be custom-built on an assembly line.
Their mission led to the Norstar design, which consisted of 28 custom aluminum extrusions. The Norstar was launched at the 2000 World Quarter Horse Show, and by Cimarron’s sixth anniversary, more than 5,000 were on the road.
Michael and Lynn Terry became sole owners of Cimarron in 2004 after buying out their partners. With the ownership change, Cimarron broke away from CM Trailers to become an independent trailer manufacturer.
“Thankfully, Michael & 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 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.”