On July 10, 1914, The Toro Motor Company was founded to build engines for The Bull Tractor Company. John Samuel Clapper, a Bull Tractor executive and co-founder of The Toro Motor Company, was named the company's first president. Toro's first plant was located at 570 North Prior Avenue
in St. Paul, Minn.
Photo: Courtesy of The Toro Company

On July 10 The Toro Company will celebrate a rare business milestone - achieving 100 years in business. According to Michael J. Hoffman, the company's chairman and CEO, he attributes its remarkable longevity to, "the character of our people and channel partners, and their relentless commitment to serving our customers and building market leadership through innovation."

The year-long celebration of its 100th anniversary provides an opportunity not only to look back on the company's notable achievements, but also to recognize the ingenuity and dedication of its employees - and to thank its channel partners and end-user customers around the world for their loyalty and trust in The Toro Company.

"These same values that have been core throughout our first 100 years form the foundation for continued success into our next century," said Hoffman.

From the start, the company built its legacy by understanding the needs of its customers and developing products and services to help them succeed. This commitment to innovation is reflected in the more than 1,500 patents its employees around the world have earned over the years.

In addition, Toro has developed strong networks of professional distributor, dealer and retailer partners across industries in more than 90 countries to provide local, expert, professional customer service. For example, in 1922, the company created the golf industry's first national distributor network. In 1934 as the business grew, the company encouraged its distributors to establish dealers in areas the distributors' staff could not effectively cover, providing local customer service that proved to be a competitive advantage.

This commitment to customer service has been instrumental in the company's development of long-term relationships with golf courses, homeowners, professional contractors, agricultural growers, construction and rental companies, government and educational institutions - in addition to many premier sporting events, venues and historic sites around the world.


For decades, customers have counted on the manufacturer because of the company's reputation for reliability, quality and standing behind its products. When the company celebrated its 25th anniversary in 1939, the company's first president and co-founder John Samuel Clapper noted that the loyal service of its employees and distributors was the customers' guarantee of a high-quality product.

As Hoffman summarized, "What was true 75 years ago when Mr. Clapper made his statement about Toro remains true today - the loyal service of our employees and channel partners is critical to our company's success."

From developing new technologies to expanding into new markets, a timeline of the company's many innovations and achievements is available at www.toro.com/100 - in addition to several highlights specific to landscape contractors and grounds professionals.