Toys Nearly Surpass the Real Thing
By Diana West
When Schoen Equipment opened a farm implement store in Freistatt, Mo., in 1968, the stock included a few farm toys. At the time, the owners never thought of the toys as a money-maker.
"We gave them away as gifts to kids of parents who bought a piece of large machinery," says Sales Manager Steve Schoen.
But when customers started coming in just for toys, Steve saw the potential for bigger sales. He never dreamed, though, that toys would eventually fill a showroom, reaping annual sales of more than $100,000.
That's saying something for the town of Freistatt, with a population of 166. Located between Joplin and Springfield in southwest Missouri, the town is famous for its two-night "Ernt-Fest" each August. The event has drawn up to 20,000 visitors per night.
And Schoen Equipment is right next door to the festival grounds.
Farm toy sales started gaining momentum in the 1980s, Steve says.
"Collectors started coming in, asking for Fiat toys," he says. Fiat was a part of the Hesston line sold at Schoen Equipment at that time.
"At first we had maybe 10 to 15 collectors a year come in," says Bruce Doss, parts manager for the company. "Now it's amazing how many people come in here, just to buy toys."
In 1986, Schoen became a John Deere dealer. That's when the company entered the toy mainstream.