The story
Founding and early history
The Toro Company was established as the "Toro Motor Company" in 1914 to build tractor engines for The Bull Tractor Company. It built steam engines to support war efforts during World War I, and changed its name to Toro Manufacturing Company in 1920 when it began to refocus on manufacturing farm equipment. The company is credited with manufacturing the first mechanical golf course maintenance equipment with the creation of a fairway mower utilizing five lawn mowers mounted behind a Toro tractor. Toro began shipping golf course maintenance products worldwide by 1928, and released the first power mower for homeowners in 1935.
In the 1940s, Toro ceased production of commercial products to focus on manufacturing equipment for World War II. It also planned additional manufacturing space in anticipation of post-war production. In 1948, Toro acquired Whirlwind Corp. and introduced a bagging system to rotary mowers. It created its first snowblower in 1951, and in 1956 was the first lawn and garden manufacturer to advertise on television.
Toro purchased an irrigation equipment manufacturer in 1962 and entered the underground irrigation business.
The chairman of the corporation from 1968 until his appointment by President Gerald Ford in 1976 as member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors was David M. Lilly. After his position at the Federal Reserve, Lilly later became dean of what is now the Carlson School of Management at the University of Minnesota (1983-1988). From 1983 to 1988, he was the university's vice president for finance and operations. The Toro Company-David M. Lilly Chair in Human Resources at the Carlson School of Management was created to honor his legacy at The Toro Company and at the university.
1986 to present
In 1986, Toro acquired the Wheel Horse Products Division of American Motors Corporation (AMC). Wheel Horse manufactured lawn and garden tractors as well as riding lawn mowers. The division was spun off from AMC for $8 million so that the automaker could maintain focus on vehicles.
Lawn and garden tractors were then marketed under the Toro, Wheel Horse, and Toro Wheel Horse names. Acquisitions continued with the purchase of Lawn-Boy in 1989 from Outboard Marine Corporation.
In the 1990s, then CEO Kendrick Melrose changed the company's strategy, shifting its focus to golf courses, sports fields, municipal parks, and commercial properties. The company acquired James Hardie Irrigation in 1996, Exmark Manufacturing in 1997, Hayter in 2005, Rain Master Irrigation Systems, and Turf Guard Wireless Monitoring Technology in 2007.
In 2007, almost 70 percent of the company's sales came from professional markets, versus one-third in 1990. In 2007, the low-end lawn and garden tractor product manufacturing was outsourced to MTD Products, to be sold at Home Depot stores. Toro discontinued its Wheel Horse models and retired the brand name in 2007. Products and other brands expanded with Toro's purchases of TYCROP Manufacturing turf equipment product line in 2009 and USPraxis in 2010.
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In 2014, the snowplow and snow removal equipment company Boss Products was purchased by Toro.
On February 15, 2019, Toro announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire privately held The Charles Machine Works, the parent company of Ditch Witch and MTI Equipment and other brands, for $700 million.
From Wikipedia’s article on The Toro Company, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.7