On July 10, 2014, Toro will celebrate a rare business milestone – achieving 100 years in business. According to Michael J. Hoffman, Toro’s chairman and chief executive officer, Toro attributes its remarkable longevity to, “the character of our people and channel partners, and their relentless commitment to serving our customers and building market leadership through innovation.”
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Toro’s year-long celebration of its 100th anniversary provides an opportunity not only to look back on the company’s notable achievements, but also to recognize the ingenuity and dedication of its employees – and to thank its channel partners and end-user customers around the world for their loyalty and trust in The Toro Company.
As Hoffman put it, “These same values that have been core throughout our first 100 years form the foundation for continued success into our next century.”
From the start, Toro built its legacy by understanding the needs of its customers and developing products and services to help them succeed. This commitment to innovation is reflected in the more than 1,500 patents its employees around the world have earned over the years.
In addition, Toro has developed strong networks of professional distributor, dealer and retailer partners across industries in more than 90 countries to provide local, expert, professional customer service. For example, in 1922, Toro created the golf industry’s first national distributor network. And, in 1934 as the business grew, Toro encouraged its distributors to establish dealers in areas the distributors’ staff could not effectively cover, providing local customer service that proved to be a competitive advantage.
This commitment to customer service has been instrumental in Toro’s development of long-term relationships with golf courses, homeowners, professional contractors, agricultural growers, construction and rental companies, government and educational institutions – in addition to many premier sporting events, venues and historic sites around the world.
For decades, customers have counted on Toro because of the company’s reputation for reliability, quality and standing behind its products. When Toro celebrated its 25th anniversary in 1939, the company’s first president and co-founder John Samuel Clapper noted that the loyal service of Toro’s employees and distributors was the customers’ guarantee of a high-quality product.
Toro's sports and grounds timeline
- In 1928, Toro introduced the Silver Flash push reel mower, billed as “America’s finest hand lawn mower.” It would become a mainstay with golf courses, cities and parks for many years.
- In 1930, at the request of The University of Minnesota, Toro built a power roller for their tennis courts. The Toro Power Roller proved to be a highly successful product for over three decades serving thousands of schools, golf courses, athletic clubs, professional sports venues, private and municipal street maintenance crews.
- In 1934, Toro’s Jupiter Large Capacity Sprinkler is introduced for golf courses, polo fields and other large turf area applications.
- In 1973, Toro introduced a new concept in commercial rotary mowing equipment – the all-hydraulic Groundsmaster 72.
- In 2008, Toro introduced the all-new Toro Groundsmaster 5900 Series rotary mower, which mows an acre in less than five minutes.
- In 2010, pioneering an all-new mower category, Toro introduced the Groundsmaster 360 rotary mower with Quad-Steer all-wheel steering.
People are invited to visit www.toro.com/100 to learn more about other Toro industry firsts and contribute their own Toro stories. They can also share their Toro memories on Twitter at www.twitter.com/thetorocompany using the hashtag #Toro100, and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/toro.company.