Brandt acquires Cervus, creates international equipment dealer powerhouse

Brandt Tractor Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Brandt Group of Companies, has successfully acquired Cervus Equipment Corp. The transaction sees publicly traded Cervus transition to 100 percent private ownership in an all-cash deal. 

According to the company, the transaction creates Canada's largest-ever equipment dealer network, adding 64 agriculture, transportation, and material handling equipment locations to Brandt's existing John Deere Construction & Forestry dealerships across Canada. When fully integrated, it will give Cervus' customers access to Brandt's national parts and technical support infrastructure. 

"The addition of Cervus' branch network is a big win for customers in all of the affected markets," says Brandt owner and CEO, Shaun Semple. "We've got a lot to offer and we're ready to roll up our sleeves and earn the loyalty of our new customers through a combination of premium products and services and a consistent, high-quality customer support experience." 

The deal expands Brandt's geographical footprint and enables the company to add, in select markets, John Deere agricultural equipment; Peterbilt transportation equipment; and Clark, Sellick, JLG, Baumann and other material handling equipment in addition to their list of products and services. 

With the acquisition of the Cervus locations in Canada, Australia and New Zealand, Brandt now owns and operates 120 full-service equipment dealerships with an additional 50+ service points and employs over 5100 people. 

The transaction will make a significant impact across the industry as the company rolls out plans to introduce expanded parts inventories, service department capacities, and extended hours of operation at the former Cervus dealerships. As operations are integrated, staffing in these locations is expected to increase by up to 40 percent with significant new facility construction across the entire network.