For-hire carrier Kottke Trucking Inc. purchased Walbon & Co. in a deal made official Aug. 4. It will provide the refrigerated carrier new routes, tractor-trailers and a Florida terminal.
The deal adds 60 tractors, 84 trailers, 60 drivers and seven additional office staff. Kottke, headquartered in Buffalo Lake, Minnesota, set up a new office in Eagan, Minnesota, to manage the acquisition.
“Our family continues to grow, and we are excited to welcome the Walbon employees into our business,” Kurt Kottke, president of Kottke Trucking, said in a statement.
Walbon’s Rosemount, Minnesota, headquarters will close, and the staff will report to Eagan, about 10 miles northwest of the old office. Some Walbon employees were laid off in the deal, said general manager Kyle Kottke, although he would not specify a number and said only that a majority will be retained.
Kottke Trucking also gains a new terminal in Wildwood, Florida.
“This deal increases our presence in the Southeast, which we service heavily, but we had no terminal. It’ll also enhance our current service to Atlanta, Birmingham (Alabama) and Charlotte (North Carolina),” Kyle Kottke said.
The acquisition means the carrier now has 175 tractors, 325 trailers, 175 drivers and 26 staffers.
