Plenty of sunshine. High 89F. Winds SE at 10 to 15 mph..
Partly cloudy skies. Low near 70F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph.
Ashley Gregory, (right) the fifth generation owner-operator of Johnie Gregory Truck Bodies, hands the keys to the business over to new owner, Derek Ungerecht, June 17. The Gregory family recently sold the 133-year-old company to Ungerecht — a sale blessed by Gregory’s grandfather prior to his death in March at age 87.
Ashley Gregory points to his grandfather, Johnie Gregory, when he was young in a photo that hangs on the wall at Johnie Gregory Truck Bodies in Woodville. The Gregory family recently sold the 133-year-old company to Derek Ungerecht.
One of the plows designed and built by Ashley Gregory's family is shown at Johnie Gregory's Truck Bodies, the Woodville company the Gregorys recently sold after 133 years.
Ashley Gregory, (right) the fifth generation owner-operator of Johnie Gregory Truck Bodies, hands the keys to the business over to new owner, Derek Ungerecht, June 17. The Gregory family recently sold the 133-year-old company to Ungerecht — a sale blessed by Gregory’s grandfather prior to his death in March at age 87.
Ashley Gregory points to his grandfather, Johnie Gregory, when he was young in a photo that hangs on the wall at Johnie Gregory Truck Bodies in Woodville. The Gregory family recently sold the 133-year-old company to Derek Ungerecht.
One of the plows designed and built by Ashley Gregory's family is shown at Johnie Gregory's Truck Bodies, the Woodville company the Gregorys recently sold after 133 years.
WOODVILLE — Johnie Gregory Truck Bodies, a 133-year-old Woodville institution, has a new owner.
Ashley Gregory, the fifth generation of his family to own and operate the business, recently oversaw its sale to Derek Ungerecht.
“It’s time. My grandfather, Johnie Gregory, had a plan and wanted to see the sale go through,” Ashley Gregory said. Johnie Gregory passed away in March at age 87.
While the clapboard barn where James Gregory founded his business and built his first plow in 1889 is now a framed picture on the office wall, the spirit, work ethic and high standards of a successful 133-year-old family business still echo over the machines bending, brushing and polishing steel for a future 20-foot dump truck.
“My grandfather worked here from the time he was 16 and worked here all his life”, Ashley Gregory said. “He wanted to work until he was 70. He stopped getting paid when he was 65 but still came in every day and worked with the rest of us.”
Johnie Gregory passed that work ethic on to his children and grandchildren.
“My dad and their brothers worked here everyday, all their lives, and I had a pair of work clothes in the back from the time I was dropped off the bus in kindergarten,” Ashley Gregory said. “My grandfather taught us what he knew.”
Johnie Gregory was more than a truck builder. An inventor of sorts, he has patents on file in Washington, D.C., for a few of the plows he engineered and manufactured.
“My great-grandfather and my great-great-grandfather also have patents in Washington,” Ashley said.
While 66% of businesses in the U.S. rarely make it to two years, Johnie Gregory Truck Bodies grew into an institution within the farming community.
While building a business is tough, selling one in the current economy can be even tougher. But for the Gregorys it was all in the timing.
“As I said, the timing was right and my grandfather gave us that blessing,” Ashley said.
Ungerecht had built a relationship with the Gregorys over the past decade. As a salesman for Penske trucks and later for Ryder, Ungerecht frequently purchased truck bodies from Johnie Gregory Truck Bodies for his clients.
“One day I was here on a sales call and Tim, Ashley’s dad, mentioned in passing they may consider selling,” Ungerecht recalls. “I immediately, half joking, said ‘I may be interested in purchasing the company.’ But it wasn’t until a few months later that I was speaking with Ashley and he brought up the possibility.”
Ungerecht, a self-described entrepreneur went home a few days later and asked his wife how much she liked the “Johnie Gregory Truck Bodies” T-shirt and cap he was wearing. He then proposed the idea of purchasing the company to her.
“I’ve always been entrepreneurial and my wife has always supported me,” he said. “We began to negotiate the deal, came to an agreement, and I took over the business last Friday (June 17).”
“Last week we were paying Derek. This week he’s paying me,” Ashley added.
While Ungerecht is now behind the desk, the Gregorys will be staying on to help guide him and offer assistance in growing the business,
Ungerecht said he wants to assure customers that while Johnie Gregory’s ownership has changed, nothing else about the business will. He plans on keeping the name on the building and its signature mud flaps while continuing to live up to the Gregorys’ high manufacturing standards.
“My grandfather wanted to be here to watch us pass the keys to Derek,” Ashley said. “He couldn’t meet him because of COVID, but we shared pictures and he was good with everything.”
Holding the keys, Ashley noted how they had been passed down from generation to generation in his family.
“My grandfather put them together with this screw and used them every day. They now belong to Derek,” Ashley said as he handed the keys to Ungerecht, smiling as they shook hands.
Sorry, there are no recent results for popular images.
www.PerquimansWeekly.com 111 W Market St Hertford, NC 27944 Main Phone: 252-426-5728 Customer Care Phone: 252-329-9505
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Invalid password or account does not exist
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the e-mail address listed on your account.
Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
A receipt was sent to your email.