MISSISSAUGA, Ont. (June 7, 2005) — The president of one of Kenworth’s staple Canadian dealerships says the business has grown immensely since his father launched it 25 years ago.

Kenworth Toronto is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. The business has expanded into a successful network of eight full-service locations, employing 300 in Ontario.

“We have a long list of customers who have bought trucks, parts and service from Kenworth Toronto over the entire 25 years we’ve been operating,” said Vince Tarola, son of the dealership’s founder Luigi Tarola, and the current president of Kenworth Toronto.

Luigi Tarola emigrated from his native Italy and settled in a new home in Toronto over 50 years ago. A mechanic by trade, he started a small gas station that also made auto repairs, later bought a car dealership, and then turned his attention to trucks in 1980 by becoming the Kenworth dealer in Toronto.

“Dad was always on the lookout for new opportunities and he found a great one with Kenworth,” said Vince, who began his career in the family business 20 years ago as a sales coordinator.

Kenworth Toronto has taken advantage of the growing market by opening new branches and building the Kenworth brand. Today, the dealer is well known in the province with locations in Barrie, Bowmanville, Hamilton, Kitchener, London, Mississauga, Sudbury, and Concord — its newest location that opened in late 2004.

Vince Tarola credits the vocational market for a big slice of the dealership’s success. “We are selling many more vocational trucks,” he says. “Today it is half of our business and we credit the Kenworth T800 for making that possible. Our medium duty business with the Kenworth T300 also has surged from nothing five years ago to 9 percent market share today.”

Additionally, the dealership’s parts business has grown more than seven-fold in the last 10 years, Vince says.

Kenworth Toronto is part of the Kenworth dealer network of nearly 300 locations throughout Canada and the U.S. All eight Kenworth Toronto locations are open seven days a week, staffed with two shifts weekdays and an extended single shift on Saturday and Sunday.

As for the next quarter-century, Vince says: “We’ve never been timid about finding new locations and seeking out markets that are underserved,” Vince said. “We have the World’s Best products with Kenworth and great employees who know what customers expect.”