Since taking over Mesa Rental from his father four years ago, Charlie Gura has seen sales continue to increase to the tune of between 10 to 15 percent annually. The figure applies both to the store’s retail sales of Husqvarna, Echo and Wacker Neuson products, along with its rental sales.
“In the rental market, we’ve always focused on dirt machines and we have a good supply of them,” said Gura, a former landscape contractor. “Being in the landscaping business I’m well acquainted with that industry and have operated just about every piece of equipment a landscape contractor would want. One of our goals this year is to add more multiple units to our inventory, so we can satisfy demand not just for landscapers, but for all our customers. If we continue to grow we may consider opening a second location, but that decision is likely a few years away.”
The owner doesn’t attribute growth to any one thing. The area’s economy is strong, he noted, and it may get even get better with the administration’s tax cuts for homeowners and small businesses like his that has six full-time employees and two part-timers. As he put it, though, “it’s just too soon to tell.” Otherwise, Gura can’t identify any trends at this point that could impact his business in a positive or negative way for the next several years, short of a tight labor market especially for qualified technicians, and competition.
“We have all the big players in our market, but we don’t compete with them,” he emphasized. “There’s also Home Depot nearby. We compete with them and other players in the market by providing great service and offering a guaranteed best rental rate, something that may be incentive enough for customers to drive a few extra miles to our store.”
