New WEDA Board Member
Bryndon Meinhardt – KanEquip
Bryndon Meinhardt, KanEquip, is the newest member of the WEDA board of directors. He will represent the association’s southwest region. Meinhardt replaces Brian Lang and will serve out the remainder of his term.
Meinhardt’s father, Jim, was a past president of the association and also served as president of the North American Equipment Dealers Association, which is now the Equipment Dealers Association.
KanEquip has 14 locations in Kansas and Nebraska. The dealership’s major brands are New Holland, Case IH, AGCO, and Kubota. KanEquip was featured in the summer 2019 issue of Western Equipment Dealer. The dealership is a long-time supporter of the association. For more information about KanEquip, visit www.kanequip.com or follow the dealership on Facebook.
WEDA Announces Dealer of the Year – Kurtis Bourassa Receives 2019 Award
Kurtis Bourassa – E. Bourassa & Sons
The Western Equipment Dealers Association has announced that Kurtis Bourassa of E. Bourassa & Sons Equipment Ltd., is the 2019 Dealer of the Year.
The prestigious Dealer of the Year award was presented at WEDA’s North American Dealer Conference November 20, 2019. The award recognizes individual dealers for their leadership within the industry, their dedication toward growing their businesses into a successful entity and their commitment and legacy to their communities. “Kurtis Bourassa is a humble dealer who is highly regarded among his peers and the industry. His values are an asset that has been used to make E. Bourassa & Sons a highly successful dealership. Through his charitable spirit within the communities served by the dealership and values of treating all customers with respect and fairness, we are honoured to recognize Kurtis with this prestigious award,” said John Schmeiser, CEO, WEDA.
Bourassa was born and raised in Radville, Saskatchewan, where “dealership life” is deeply rooted in the Bourassa family. He grew up in and around the dealership working for his father, Dan, throughout his teenage years.
Following high school, Bourassa took a different path than other family members. He studied civil engineering technology in college and worked in the dealership’s service department during the summer months, often repairing combines. After graduating from college in 1998, Bourassa moved to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, where spent the next five years working in construction management and geotechnical consulting.
In 2003, during the final stages of construction of a new dealership facility in Assiniboia, Saskatchewan, Bourassa decided it was time to join the family business. He moved to Assiniboia to complete the construction and take on the role of general manager of E. Bourassa & Sons. Bourassa’s “out of the box” thinking and drive to provide a whole new customer experience led to many changes in his first few years and not everyone was onboard with his ideas and plans. Employee turnover was high at first but within two years the company was growing at more than 20% annually.
The company expanded to three locations by 1999 but Bourassa, along with his brothers and sister, recognized more geography was needed to grow the business and take advantage of the opportunities before them. After many unsuccessful attempts to purchase a neighboring two-store dealership in the early 2000s, Bourassa was able to negotiate a deal in late 2008. In 2009, Bourassa and his siblings became partners, purchasing E. Bourassa & Sons from their parents. E. Bourassa & Sons now operates four New Holland dealerships and two NAPA auto parts stores.
Bourassa was elected to the former Canada West Equipment Dealers Association board as director in 2012 and remained active on the board until 2014 when Canada West and the former SouthWestern Association merged to become the Western Equipment Dealers Association. Bourassa continues to be involved in the new association as a member of the Saskatchewan Dealer Advisory Committee.
Bourassa remains an avid supporter of the Canada Equipment Dealers Foundation and its initiatives to attract and train young people for the various roles in the dealership. With a slogan of “Where the people make the difference,” he invests in employee training and education.
As fourth-generation owners, Bourassa and his partners are proud of their heritage and the values instilled in them from a young age to work hard and treat all customers with respect and fairness, never forgetting about the small farmer. Last year marked the 95th year in business for E. Bourassa & Sons and they have many accomplishments of which to be proud, such as being named Western Producer Outstanding Dealership of the Year in 2007 and a being a member in the exclusive New Holland President’s Club every year since its inception in 2010. The New Holland President’s Club recognizes top dealers for their sales and market share, facilities, operations, service standards, and overall business acumen.
Bourassa and the E. Bourassa & Sons leadership team run a successful operation and are recognized for their outstanding customer service and industry leadership among both peers and competitors. Along with his partners and their 120+ employees, Bourassa is heavily involved in supporting his local communities. He has served as director of his local chamber of commerce, is a proud supporter of local 4H clubs, and donates to many local charities and associations such as The Canadian Food Bank, United Way, Salvation Army, Family Place, local toy drives, and juvenile diabetes.
“I am extremely humbled and honored having been recognized as the 2019 Dealer of the Year,” said Bourassa. “This award is shared with my partners and staff at E. Bourassa & Sons because it represents our commitment of working together and sharing a common purpose of serving our customers and giving back to our community.” Visit the dealership online at https://ebourassa.com and follow E. Bourassa & Sons on Facebook.
For more information about the Western Equipment Dealers Association or the Dealer of the Year award, contact John Schmeiser at jschmeiser@westerneda.com or call 800-661-2452.
Federated Insurance Company of Canada presents Pattison Agriculture with the William L. (Bill) Armstrong Safety & Loss Control Award at the WEDA Conference
Arthur Ward (left), president of Pattison Agriculture, receives the William L. (Bill) Armstrong Safety and Loss Control Award from Wayne Budge, manager, Association Partnerships, Federated Insurance.
The Bill Armstrong Safety and Loss Control Award was created by the former Canada West Equipment Dealers Association to honor Bill Armstrong, who was the manager for the Alberta/British Columbia Farm Equipment Dealers Association from 1970 – 1984. Federated Insurance is honoured to be involved in the nomination and survey process of the award. Their team of Marketing Reps and Loss Control Consultants are the forerunners in nominating dealers for this award, and we are grateful for their hard work in recommending the nominees for this prestigious award.
This award is given to a farm equipment dealer who has made an investment in people, safety and training. They must demonstrate a commitment to risk management and loss prevention plans, processes, and procedures while also participating in and supporting their community.
Wayne Budge, Manager, Association Partnerships at Federated Insurance presented the award to Arthur Ward, President of Pattison Agriculture. Visit the dealership online at https://pattisonag.com and follow Pattison Agriculture on Facebook.
