COLUMBIA CITY, Ind. — When Kenny and Barbara Rupley decided to open a farm equipment dealership in the early 1980s, a few people told them they weren’t sure it was the right move, given the state of agriculture at the time.

Despite those initial concerns, Rupley Farm Equipment, Inc. has endured and last weekend, celebrated 30 years of business. “At the beginning, if we’d listened to anyone, we never would have started,” Kenny said. “But we were too busy doing what we had to do to get started.”

Added Barbara: “We talked about (the pros and cons), but we must have thought we could do it.”

The business started in a corner of a field on their property, on Indiana 114 south of Columbia City. In the years since their 1982 opening, they expanded the original building and added more.

They sell zero-turn riding mowers by Woods, Bush Hog and Dixon. The spring-like weather the region had in March started the season a bit early, as it brought in customers eager to begin working outside, the Rupleys noted.

“Everything has been a month earlier than normal,” Kenny said. “We’ve been picking up nine to 11 mowers a day for service and repair, and then we’re taking them back to the customers.”

Rupley’s service after the sale is one reason the company has been around as long as it has, Barbara stated. “We have a good service department. We always try to be helpful. If somebody has a problem on a Sunday, even though we’re closed, we try to find them what they need to get their equipment fixed,” she explained.

The company has nine employees, two of whom have been with the Rupleys since they started the business.

“Our customers know we’re going to take care of them with service,” Kenny said. “We treat them just the same as everyone else. And they know they’re going to get the same price as their neighbor because we have one price for everyone.”

In addition to its riding mowers, Rupley’s offers an extensive line of farm equipment, including McCormick tractors, Salford and Kongskilde tillage tools, Bush Hog rotary mowers and wagons and trailers. While most of the company’s sales are within a 100-mile area, they have customers in Pennsylvania, New York and Oklahoma.

“The equipment we sell the most is altogether different than it used to be,” Kenny said. “When we started, we sold a lot of plows, discs and field cultivators. Now, we sell more seed tenders, vertical tillage equipment, grain carts and rolling baskets.”

Some pieces of equipment such as wagons and manure spreaders, are much bigger than they used to be, Barbara noted.

The market for new and used equipment is good right now, Kenny said, adding that prices farmers are getting for their products are a factor in sales. “If a farmer makes a nickel, he’s going to spend a dime,” he added.

In addition to changes in the type of equipment they sell, the Rupleys said they’ve noticed a difference in some of their customers. The current generation of customers is probably more ready to buy a piece of equipment than the previous generation, Barbara explained.

“Many of the customers we had when we started are gone,” Kenny said. “But our customers are like family to us. Sometimes they’ll stop in just to have some popcorn and visit.”

The Rupleys said they haven’t regretted starting their business in the country rather than closer to town. “We figured we were from the country and we were going to stay in the agriculture area,” Kenny stated. “I’m going to continue to do this until they plant me.”

For more details, visit www.rupleyfarm equipment.com or call 260-344-1692.