953 nut 55,155 #1 Posted May 27 Today’s letter is “Y” Yesterday’s yearning for yard versatility yielded Yard Marvel Yard Marvel Yard Marvel built a line of gasoline powered basic operator-friendly lawn maintenance equipment for the rental industry. Paul Hastings of Spokane, WA, was the inventor of a universal quick release mechanism that made it easy to change implements and made the Yard Marvel easy to rent as the drive mechanism had a flexible shaft that would power a lawn mower, a rototiller, or a snow blower. Hastings worked a variety of jobs before beginning a garden tiller distributorship for the Merry Tiller in 1949. During this time Hastings’ suggestions for improvement of the Merry Tiller eventually led to his and Albert Merry’s creation of Yard Marvel in 1955. Yard Marvel’s first product was the combo lawn mower, tiller, and snow blower and was quickly successful. Rental agencies liked the idea of having three machines available to rent with one universal power unit. Some years later Yard Marvels went to stand-alone mowers, tillers dethatches and snow blowers. Albert Merry left the business after several years to join his father, Clayton Merry, at Merry Tiller and Hasting became the sole owner of Yard Marvel. In 1960, Yard Marvel introduced the Mountaineer trail bike, eventually building two different models for either recreation or hunting. At the time there was a flood of small trail bikes on the market and the Mountaineer was never a profitable addition to the line. Industry consolidation led to the sale of Merry Tiller to MacKissic in 1991 and Yard Marvel in 2012. “This is a wonderful union of two long-time established U.S. manufacturers of high-quality lawn and garden products,” said Rick Dhein, president of MacKissic. “The addition of Yard Marvel products to our other brands — Mighty Mac, Merry Tiller, and Easy Auger — is a natural fit.” “After 57 years of manufacturing we have reached a point that it is no longer feasible to continue operation," said Tricia Hastings, president of the company and daughter of the company’s founders, in an open letter to customers. "The poor economy and rising costs contributed to our low sales volume, which in the long run made the business unsustainable. It is with a heavy heart and deep regret that I must inform you of my decision to close Yard Mfg. Marvel Co. in early November 2012.” 7 2 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
