It took less than three hours to auction off 40 years worth of equipment accumulated by one of the area's premier landscaping businesses, as the auction attracted over 200 bidders, with some items bringing in $10,000 or more.
Heavy duty trucks
The large crowd, predominantly men, consisted of contractors, farmers, landscapers, homeowners with large yards, and perhaps someone interested in buying a memento of an old fashioned family business, now but a fond memory.
Fleet of pick up trucks
14 comments:
And you folks keep telling me that Amherst isn't imploding?
Unless I'm missing something, one of the biggest & most profitable landscaping companies in the area just sorta sold off all their stuff...
40 years -- 1973-2013 -- the rise and fall of Planet UMass....
At age 73, having worked at it for 40 years, Mr. Shumway simply decided to retire.
And, technically, they are located in Belchertown.
Great company that will be sorely missed by this community. Bill (tree guy) is a fine man and I hope he'll fare well now that S+S has closed its doors.
Agreed. Bill did a fair amount of work at my house over the years.
When Sam Walton retired, he didn't shut down WalMart, did he? Had the business been as profitable as it was 30 years ago, I can't believe it wouldn't have been sold.
Anyone who has spent time with Earle Shumway knows what a great person he is. I hope Earle and his wife, Jeanne, enjoy retirement to the fullest!
Shumway was known as the expensive company. Many folks never bothered to call them because of their costs. Others undercut them and cut a lot of their business. Shumway cashed out with all he could. Nothing wrong with that.
My wife always waited until late fall early winter to order tree work, because they always gave a 15% discount.
They were more expensive because they had health insurance for employees. Buy local when local does it right. There is a reason why Walmart is cheap.
FOR ALL lARRY'S COMMENTERS. It looks like we are the cause of all Walter's and Dr. Ed's ignorant, racist, sexist, etc..., comments. I think we should try and ignore them and not give them the attention they so dearly dig for. If we ignore their comments and not let them in the conversations, maybe they will just go away. Notice how they try to get into this post's discussion, when they don't even know anything about the topic or the people it's about. Never know, it works on dogs? I know that's an insult to compare those two with our four legged friends but you get my message.
I understand it now -- I'm racist, sexist & homophobic for pointing out basic economic facts. i"m guessing that anyone whose head isn't firmly buried in the sand -- who accurately points out that Amherst economy is now starting to implode is going to be receiving similar insults.
I stand by what I initially wrote -- it looks to me that one of the biggest and once-most-profitable landscaping companies "in" Amherst -- even if a few thousand yards over the town line -- just shut down and sold off all their stuff.
The fact that Earle Shumway retired is irrelevant -- Jean Harlow did the same thing and her business became -- Eagle Crest. It wasn't liquidated....
Walter, you are a sad, sad person. You must not realize the amount of bitterness in every post you make.
They were not known as "the expensive company," though perhaps that was your perception. They did things right - and you get what you pay for.
1:03 pm Stop you're feeding them, ignore them-ignore them. I know it's hard not to try and correct them but don't. Maybe they will go away when they lose the attention they are trying to achieve. It's our last hope to rid ouselves of this pestilence named Walter and Dr. Ed.
There are many factors that contributed to the "liquidation" of Shumways. As a former employee I assure you that it was not a lack of customer base or available work that ultimately led to this decision. The work is still here in Amherst. There is still a demand for landscaping work. That is evident from the dozens of landscaping companies you see doing work here each and every day. As for the cost of services I would inform you that unlike many other companies in the business, Shumways offered heath insurance and contributed to employees IRAs. They also provided training and licensing to their employees. All of those dynamics don't come at a bargain price but cutting corners ends up costing customers more in the end.
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