ForConstructionPros.com

How would you like to have your store stocked with the highest quality light equipment and have exclusive access to the industry's leading brand of large diesel pumps, all while enjoying a relationship with a manufacturer that has a vested interest in the success of your business?

That's exactly what John Michael Paz, president and owner of Godwin Pumps of America Inc., shown in the photo above, wants for small- to medium-size independent rental businesses, and he has a plan to make it happen.

Paz calls it his "Middle Market Strategy" and his goal is to give the "little guys" or, more precisely, independent rental businesses with $3 to $20 million in volume, a leg up on the competition by supplying them with his line of light equipment, which includes new Wet-Prime, gasoline-powered contractor pumps as well as generators and light towers. By becoming a Godwin dealer, these businesses also gain exclusive access to Godwin's bread and butter, an inventory of more than 4,000 large Dri-Prime diesel pumps.

Paz says his strategy creates a win-win situation. "We want to build a relationship with the small guy on the light line to drive business back to the big diesels," he says.

According to Paz, the term "middle market" refers to the size of the rental business he's targeting but also to the geographical location of the stores he hopes to sign on. With 24 company-owned stores around the country and 25 distributors with hundreds of locations from coast to coast, Paz hopes to get to those businesses located in the gaps. The key to making this plan work, he says, is to build relationships with the rental businesses.