Chandler Equipment expands product offerings with Roambuilt acquisition

Under the leadership of owners Chris and Morgan Chandler, Springdale-based Chandler Equipment Inc. closed a significant deal on April 1. The company acquired Roambuilt, an Oregon-based manufacturer of exterior accessories for Sprinter vans manufactured by Mercedes-Benz. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the acquisition marks a significant step in the company’s growth and expansion.

CEO Chris Chandler said the Roambuilt deal was an asset sale, so no employees will move to Northwest Arkansas.

“We purchased all their designs, patents, trademarks and working website and are hiring five new employees in Springdale to run the operation,” he said.

Originating as an agriculture equipment distributor in 1978 in Batesville, Chandler Equipment relocated to Springdale in 1980 and has transformed into a manufacturer and supplier offering truck accessories for various customers in the agriculture, food, oil and gas and transportation industries.

In 2021, Chandler Equipment was one of six Arkansas companies recognized with a Governor’s Award for Excellence in Global Trade, recognizing the exporting success of small, medium and large Arkansas companies.

The Roambuilt acquisition exemplifies recent growth. Chandler said the business has grown 30% in the past three years and added 30,000 square feet of new manufacturing and warehouse space this past summer to its three-building, 7-acre company headquarters on West Sunset Avenue in Springdale. Total operating space now stands at a little more than 92,000 square feet.

Chandler Equipment also manufactures products for Chandler Truck Accessories and Backwoods Adventure Mods brands.

“With our business expansion, we have added 25 new jobs in the manufacturing of truck accessories to Northwest Arkansas over the past year,” Chris Chandler said. “We are already looking for additional space, most likely around 50,000 square feet.”

Chandler said the Roambuilt division will operate separately from Chandler Equipment. The company’s four brands have a little over 100 employees.

Cecil Annett started Roambuilt in 2017 in Portland, Ore. Chandler did not disclose the company’s revenue figures.