One of the things that has helped Scott Companies throughout the years to distinguish itself from many other businesses is our attempt to keep our customers leased by offering more of a variety of services to them.

Customers are the same today as in the past; they expect quality service and quality products. We have always attempted to stand behind our products when our customers question something. We want to keep our customers, and keep them pleased.

Our financing department, which has about 25 employees, was created over 40 years ago to service our customers when national financing programs decided to have dealers start offering financing. We started offering financing to enhance, support, and enable our customers to buy equipment. We now offer financing, including purchases, parts and service, for all of our locations in four states for our various companies.

Prior to starting our own financing, some customers had problems with a profile or rating to obtain financing. Today we do both, profiling and rating, and that works out better for our customers. We know them and work with them.

Being a native of St. Tammany Parish, and having worked for International Harvester prior to joining Scott in 1965, I was fortunate to have worked with a variety of customers from all parts of the state and this gave me a better insight into the different problems each area faced.

Two things the customer has to have to succeed are financing and insurance. We feel it is a major plus for our company to be able to offer customers both, and in doing so it helps relieve the customer of some worries in equipment buying.

Insurance on equipment was another problem facing many customers in years past. A lot of agencies didn't offer full services and this created a dilemma for those who waned to buy equipment.

In 1981 we started our own insurance agency to help the customer overcome some of his insurance problems. We wanted to make it possible for the customer to be able to come to one location and get all of the coverage he might need with the coverage and program he could afford.

In 1986 we bought out another insurance agency and this greatly expanded our ability to offer total insurance packages for customers. The insurance department now has some 20 employees and is a full-line agency, including coverage for our thousands of forestry and truck customers.

We have a very strong office staff for both finance and insurance and our people are dedicated to making things work for the benefit of our customers. They realize it is not just the new guy going into business that need finance and insurance help, it is all people regardless of their number of years in business.

Our departments have been very successful because we are able to put together a complete package for the benefit of our customers. Many relationships we developed years ago are still going today as their sons, grandsons, or next generation of ownership take over their business. It is a win-win situation for all.

One division that has greatly benefited its customers with our financing and insurance offerings is our Truck Division. The division was under the Scott Truck & Tractor Co. name for years, but about four years ago became a separate division so it could better concentrate on truck customers only.

Today the division has about 30 employees and covers the northeastern part of Louisiana with medium to heavy trucks. Many of their customers today are the same families who began buying their trucks from us many, many years ago. The division's employees believe that treating the customers fairly, offering them a fair value for their dollar and servicing their purchases are top priorities.

We are proud of our history with our truck customers. Many have been with us for years, including one that bought his first truck in 1941 and now owns 11 of our trucks.
Caring for our customer is by far our number one objective. Financing, insurance, quality service, and dedication by our employees give us the opportunities to give our customers a total package.