Visitors to two major farm shows in Ontario and Quebec, Canada, in 2013 witnessed something new – a MacDon booth. This stronger presence for MacDon at both Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show in Woodstock, Ontario, and Expo-Champs in St. Liboire, Quebec, coincides with a major change in how farmers will purchase the new 5 Series MacDon FlexDrapers at many dealers starting in 2014.

“Farmers have been using MacDon built FlexDrapers in Ontario and Quebec for almost 10 years now, but for many of them it was as an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) supplied product for their combines,” says Ghislain Beaudin, MacDon’s Marketing Consultant for Eastern Canada. “Now those farmers will be able to purchase the new 5 Series FlexDraper® technology.”

Beaudin says that in almost every instance, dealers that once sold FlexDrapers as an OEM product have decided to continue to handle the header under the MacDon brand. Dealers will be able to offer their customers a MacDon branded product for most current model combines.

“Dealers truly want the FD75. My phone hasn’t stopped ringing since the shows. I even have some interested in handling MacDon’s entire product line, including MacDon’s windrowers and haying products.”

According to Beaudin the brand change on the endshield should result in a few benefits for the dealer, even though the product itself will remain exactly the same.

“The biggest advantage dealers will experience is that they can now deal directly with the people who build the product. If they have a question they can call up MacDon in Winnipeg directly and speak with a product representative."

And, of course, farmers will now also have a chance to kick the tires on new MacDon products more often at farm shows. Make sure to stop by and visit the MacDon site at a farm show near you.