Jake Ralph, Landoll Territory Manager
“T
illage is a system; it’s not one piece here, one piece there,” says Jake Ralph, territory manager for Landoll. “There is no right or wrong way to do it, but you have got to have a plan and work your plan.”
Tilloll : Tried and True
for Landoll, he enjoys getting to wear a lot of hats, whether he is with customers promoting sales, in the field turning wrenches, or visiting dealerships to assist salesmen. “This job complements farming well,” says Jake. “It allows me to be in the Jake Ralph sees tillage as a systematic customer’s shoes, which I think approach for each individual provides a lot of value.” operation. With his confidence in Landoll equipment and his Being an independent, family-owned own knowledge of farming, he is company, Jake says that Landoll’s passionate about what he can do to market penetration is very impressive, help farmers create their own system and that their vertical integration with Landoll equipment. paired with the diversity of products they offer is what makes them unique. Growing up, Jake was always exposed They manufacture trailers, tillage, to and interested in the agriculture construction equipment, forklifts, industry. He went to college to and even military equipment, but become a high school ag teacher and in the areas of Iowa and Illinois that FFA advisor but decided to take a Jake represents, one main tool stands different route and got into sales after out: the Tilloll. graduating. A few years back, he also got the opportunity to buy out his “In an industry that has brought grandpa’s grain operation and begin about a lot of different tillage pieces, farming, which he believes goes hand we see a lot of success with a legacy in hand with selling farm equipment. product like the Tilloll,” says Jake. In his role as a territory manager “People still stick with the tried and
13 · Central Illinois Ag · www.centralilag.com
true because it is what their dad and grandpa ran.” McLean county is home to the Tilloll as the original was created in Bloomington, Illinois in the 1980s. Today, Landoll is headquartered in Marysville, Kansas, with additional manufacturing locations in Beloit and Waterville, Kansas. Their intention is to keep all production within the US. Even though the Tilloll has been around for decades, the resurgence of the tool in central Illinois recently has been a direct result of the necessary modernization of the 876 into the 877. “The rebirth of the Tilloll with the 877 was a way for us to keep the bones of the tool the same while modernizing what was already there,” says Jake. “It is pretty superior to what we see in the industry today.” The leadership team at Landoll knew it was necessary for them to make some updates to the tool to keep up with the rapidly improving
