Huddig president emphasizes dealer collaboration amid US market push

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Swedish equipment manufacturer Huddig is working with dealers to ensure financing, sales and service support for its Huddig 1370 power excavator as the company enters the United States market. 

To drive U.S. adoption for the OEM, Huddig is focusing on close collaboration with dealers, Paul Barlow, president of Huddig Inc., the company’s North American division, told Equipment Finance News Oct. 8 at The Utility Expo 2025. 

“The dealer is really the financing and the intermediary between us and the end customer,” he said. “We, as a manufacturer, will support the machine, but we really want the dealer to have that relationship.” 

Huddig is also focusing on versatility rather than single-use performance as it expands to U.S. customers, emphasizing that the equipment is designed for customers that perform multiple tasks across varied terrain, such as utility companies and municipalities, Barlow said. 

“This machine is not for everybody, and we’re not trying to be everything for everyone,” he said. “There is a very specific niche market for somebody that’s either a small municipality or a small company that doesn’t want to maintain three or four different vehicles.”

The manufacturer relies on its dealer network to manage customer financing, as well as sales and service, and direct factory support, Barlow said.  

Since the machines are custom-built, Huddig does not expect dealers to hold excess inventory; instead, tailoring each build to the buyer’s needs, with dealers responding positively to the simplified maintenance and flexible financing model. 

The company has three North American dealer partners: Canada-based JT Equip, Denver-based KJF Equipment and Midwestern dealer Vancer Railway Group, according to the company’s website. 

Expansion challenges 

As the company moves into the North American market, Huddig is working to shift to the region’s mindset, Barlow said. 

“The U.S. market is very one machine, one function, whereas Europe is very much maximizing utilization out of one machine,” he said. “That’s the biggest challenge that we have to overcome, is that mindset.” 

One approach the company has adopted is introducing the machine to both dealers and customers, while using each side of the “equipment triangle,” of dealers, OEMs and buyers to gain access to the other side, Barlow said. 

“What we’re trying to do is garner the interest from end users and then bring dealers into that triangle,” he said. “As those dealers see the value in that machine, then that starts to permeate, and we start to get growth that way.” 

The North America push with the introduction of the Huddig 1370, along with the 1370T hybrid version, comes as fellow Swedish OEM Volvo is investing millions to expand its U.S. construction equipment products, according to a June 10 Volvo release. Several other foreign construction OEMs, including LGMG, Liugong and Sany, are also targeting the U.S. market. 

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