2014 was a busy year for Larson Farm & Lawn based in Rogersville, Mo.

The company added four new locations in two separate acquisitions. First, in July, they purchased Murphy Farm and Lawn in Anderson, Mo., Then, in October, they acquired the assets of Donald Farm & Lawn, including three John Deere dealerships in Lebanon, Rolla and Jefferson City. These recent acquisitions bring the total number of Larson Farm and Lawn locations to nine, including Rogersville, Nixa, West Plains and Freistatt, Mo., and Harrison, Ark.  

Glenn Larson, president and owner of the group said he is excited to add more locations with expanded trade areas. “We’ve been fortunate to experience success and growth in market share with John Deere”, he says, “and we look forward to the opportunity to grow our footprint. Our secret to success is simple; provide an excellent product and find employees who are willing to listen, ensure, and excel. We are prepared to earn the business of folks at the new locations with a shared commitment to success and support.” 

As part of the expansion, Brad Newman has been named Larson Farm and Lawn corporate director of operations. Brad was previously employed by John Deere for 15 years and has spent the past seven years as territory manager in the Springfield area. He grew up in Sullivan, Mo., on a small farm raising cattle, corn, and soybeans. Brad graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a degree in agricultural systems management.

Brian Craven has been named corporate director of sales and marketing.  He is a native of Houston, Mo., and attended Southwest Missouri State University.  He was service manager for Action Trailer for nine years. He began his career with the Larson Group’s Peterbilt dealership in Springfield in May of 1999 and moved to the Deere dealership at Rogersville when Larson’s purchased it later that year.

Chuck Peterman has been named corporate used equipment manager. He started with Farm Credit Services as a loan officer and then joined PACCAR as a general sales manager. He later spent 17 years working with PACCAR and Peterbilt Motors Company as a national account manager. In early 2011 he joined The Larson Group at Peterbilt as vice president and director of sales.

Trista Barnes is the new corporate controller. A native of Colorado, she attended Missouri State University and worked at Larson’s as receptionist and accountant during college. After graduating with a master’s degree in accounting, she was an accounting auditor at BKD for two years, and later a staff accountant at SRC’s NewStream Enterprises for four years. She rejoined Larson’s in February of 2014.

Cheri Fenton has been named Corporate Human Resources Manager. She grew up in Salem, Mo., and attended Drury University, then Arkansas State University in Jonesboro and graduated with a degree in accounting. She did accounting and payroll for a large farming operation in Jonesboro before moving back to Springfield to be a property accountant for the Wooten Co. in 2001. Her first position for Larson's was as office manager in 2003.

Will Reynolds has been named corporate safety & compliance manager. He worked for MODOT as a Transportation Investigator for 4 years, and was a Deputy Sheriff in Christian county for another four years. After that he was with the Branson Police Department as supervisor of the motorcycle patrol unit. He graduated from Missouri Southern State University with a Criminal Justice Administration degree.

Finally, Mike Wiles has been named corporate marketing director. A graduate of Southwest Missouri State University, he had been store manager at S & H Farm Supply in Rogersville for 11 years. Other past positions that he has held include Territory Manager for AGCO Corporation and KTTS Farm news director.