The Grasshopper Company, a leading manufacturer of commercial and residential zero-turn mowers, has a reputation for high quality production. Owned and operated since 1958 in Moundridge, Kan., it recently reached the final round of the Kansas Manufacturing Council’s 2022 Coolest Thing Made In Kansas – People’s Choice competition.
Additionally, the manufacturer has received awards recognizing both its products and business style, including three Dealer’s Choice Awards from the Equipment Dealers’ Association and the Presidential “E” Award from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Grasshopper Mower’s logo can be found emblazoned on its turf equipment across the country — from the White House lawn to Arlington National Cemetery to the side of a drag racing car in southern Georgia — and even across international waters in more than 40 countries.
At its Kansas facility, Grasshopper manufactures and distributes state-of-the-art zero-turn radius mowers.
Grasshopper developed the dual swing-out levers seen on most commercial equipment today, and many of its customers depend on its machines for operational lifespans of more than 25 years.
For longtime customers like Chris Shipp, Grasshopper’s advantages go far beyond the product itself. Shipp said Grasshopper’s support and style of business paired with high quality of the mowers has kept him coming back since 1994.
“Their customer service is second to none,” Shipp explained. “It’s more like a family rather than an industrial business. At many other brands, you can’t call somebody in customer support who knows you by name. At Grasshopper, you can.”
In addition to customer service — where customers get to talk with employees, not an automated attendant — Grasshopper maintains a rigorous standard for its products, which Shipp said keeps him and many others coming back year after year.
Trent Guyer, vice president of marketing and digital strategy at Grasshopper Mowers, said the company tests every one of its mowers before shipping to ensure each one it sells is up to its standards.
“We never want to make excuses for something failing or being below average or even just average,” Guyer said. “We test to make sure the product goes out the door ready to go without any excuses and without any failures.”
Guyer said they also test parts they receive from their international counterparts to ensure quality, such as engines from Japan. Grasshopper exports to more than 40 countries and is in day-to-day contact with at least 20.
Guyer said doing all its work in Kansas is important to the company.
“The people of the Midwest have a hard-working spirit about them,” Guyer said. “And being in Kansas, there’s so much agricultural equipment and machinery built in this country and in this state already, so it’s in our nature around us. We’re a company in a small town in a relatively less-populated state with worldwide impact, which is pretty exciting.”
Grasshopper also works to create personal relationships with many of its clients, even sponsoring Shipp in his drag racing hobby in southern Georgia. Shipp said the company constantly supports him in ways that go beyond business ventures.
“They have as much faith in me as I have in them and their products,” Shipp said. “Their business supports me better than anyone else in the lawn care industry. They’ve always treated me well and with mutual respect.”
Grasshopper also has been recognized for its efforts in sustainability, earning a Pollution Prevention Award in 2012 from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment and a Sustainability Award from Green Biz Wichita.
“How we treat the environment is important to many of our customers, their cities and their businesses,” Guyer said. “So that makes environmentalism important to us.”
Grasshopper recently launched a stand-on model and is working to manufacture new products its customers want, including studying both battery-powered and autonomous mowers.
“Continuously, over the years, we’re always making modifications and tweaks and studying everything that we’re hearing is important to our customers and prospects,” Guyer said.
Generations of revolutionary manufacturing and trustworthy service have earned Grasshopper a loyal, tight-knit customer base.
