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Skar Trucking Inc. marks 20 years as a growing business in Kenmare

When Jason Skar started his business, he had one asset, a truck to haul grain, propane and anhydrous ammonia.

2/23/16 (Tue)

Skar Trucking started 20 years ago . . . Jason Skar is a Kenmare businessman who started out as a one-man operation with one truck 20 years ago. Skar now has a fleet of 12 semi-trailers and a dozen employees on the east edge of Kenmare.

By Marvin Baker

When Jason Skar started his business, he had one asset, a truck to haul grain, propane and anhydrous ammonia.

At that time, he used a makeshift office in his house to keep transaction receipts which didn’t take long to fill with records.

Twenty years later, Skar Trucking Inc., has a fleet of 12 semi-trailers, at least 12 employees and just opened a second shop building to house the vehicles and perform maintenance on them.

In addition, the new building, which will house at least four semi-trailers, has office space including an office for Skar himself that is fully furnished and is beginning to take shape.

His current office, in a building constructed about six years ago, has a status board showing trucks that have been dispatched, as well as other information about trucks, drivers and customers.

“We just try to do a good job and the work comes to us,” Skar said. “We keep up with the need and do what we’re asked to do.”

That work mainly involves hauling agricultural products in northwestern North Dakota. He says 85 percent of the work is within a 65-mile radius of Kenmare.

Otherwise, Skar Trucking semis will haul cargo across the state of North Dakota and sometimes cross the international boundary for customers.

According to Skar, all the employees are drivers, but they also work on the vehicles together and Mitch Herfindahl takes the lead on maintenance.

And during periods of rough weather, maintenance could be a challenge without the new building where Skar featured an open house on Jan. 30.

“When it’s cold and we have to get 12 trucks in here, we better make sure they go out the same way they came in,” he said of the original building. “You couldn’t hardly slip a piece of paper between them.”

As a result, the biggest reason for putting up the new, four-bay building, is to get more room, he said.

The new building features space to park at least three semi-trailers and has a full wash bay where a fourth can be parked.

In addition, there is office space on the south side of the building that could be rented out. There’s also an upper deck that will be used to store parts and other items.

“It gives us room and gets us some office space,” he said. “With this office, I was able to get out of the house and not be so crammed in. We now have adequate space and room for a little growth.”

With a business that has been built mostly from off-farm grain hauling, fertilizer and some gravel, Skar said the company also does some work on grain bins.

They take existing structures and retrofit them for better efficiency in storing and moving grain.

“That’s part of the business too,” Skar said. “We’re just trying to make them (grain bins) better.”

Skar praises his customers for helping him take his business from its humble beginnings to where it is today.

However, customer service is paramount in any business and it shows with Skar Trucking based on repeat business.

It’s a mutual respect that starts with good customer service.

“We are where we are today because we’ve had good customers and we’ve worked hard for them,” Skar said. “The foundation of success is in good relationships.” ... Read EVERY WORD on EVERY PAGE of The Kenmare News by subscribing--online or in print!