Don’t let the name fool you.

Mr. Lift Truck, while it specializes in equipment that helps lift things, offers a few pieces of earthmoving machinery, too.

The company added Terex and Genie complete lines in 2002 and Mustang skid steers in 2003.

“The dirt equipment business has been very good to us,” said President Don Woods. “It complements the work we do with forklifts and gives us a wide area of coverage.”

The Miami, Fla.-based company got its start in 1979 as a used forklift dealer. Woods entered the new machinery end of the business in 1985 at the request of Mitsubishi, which wanted Mr. Lift Truck to sell its forklifts as a sub dealer.

Its offerings expanded in 1996 with the Manitou complete line, for which it has twice been the top dealer in the country. Hyundai forklifts were added in 2000 and, in each of the past four years, Mr. Lift Truck was one of its top five dealers. The most recent addition is Young-Heinrich electric forklifts.

Mr. Lift Truck moved to its current location in 1995, but it soon wasn’t big enough to handle the company’s growth. The company recently built a 6,000-sq.-ft. building to house showrooms and offices.

“We have outgrown our current facilities because of the growth of the company and the number of employees. We were stepping all over each other,” Woods said of its 21 staffers.

He said the company’s biggest strength is its service department and loyal employees.

“There is a problem coming for dealers in south Florida in obtaining good employees because of the high cost of housing,” Woods said. “We are lucky to have a good group of local employees who grew up in this area and know it well.”

Woods and his son, Greg, split the responsibility of specializing in the various brands. While both can work with customers on any of the products, Don specializes in the Terex, Mustang and Manitou lines, while Greg handles the Hyundai and Young-Heinrich lines.

Mr. Lift Truck covers the area from Key West to West Palm Beach and it will soon set up an operation in Fort Myers.

Woods also has dealerships in Puerto Rico and Trinidad, allowing the company to serve all of South America. CEG Staff

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