‘Don’t be a fool. Small people like us; we need to have debt otherwise we won’t grow.’ My father told me this story often. The story meant that we were ‘all in,’ and that we realized it took a certain amount of money to use to grow and do something new and bigger.” – Bernard Krone, recalling the story passed down about what his great-grandmother said to her son when he wanted to celebrate the paying off the company debts in 1936.

Based in Spelle, Germany, Krone has been family owned and operated since its founding in 1906. Focusing solely on hay and forage equipment today, its North American operations are based out of Memphis.

In this podcast, recorded just before the kickoff of the 2018 Krone Annual Meeting, you’ll hear from Bernard Krone IV. In this casual interview, he talks about the company’s 112-year history, its exit from a segment representing 33% of the company’s revenues that allowed them to pursue their Big M and BigX pace-setting innovations, and a closer look into this $2.5 billion company with 6,000 employees worldwide.  He also covers the firm’s history as a dealer and, the separate company (LVD) that his older sister, Dorothee runs, which is the biggest John Deere dealer groups in Germany.