Farm and Garden Machinery and Equipment Merchant Wholesalers
Description
This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in the merchant wholesale distribution of specialized machinery, equipment, and related parts generally used in agricultural, farm, and lawn and garden activities. Illustrative Examples: Animal feeders merchant wholesalers Lawnmowers merchant wholesalers Milking machinery and equipment merchant wholesalers Harvesting machinery and equipment merchant wholesalers Planting machinery and equipment merchant wholesalers
Hierarchy
| Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 42 | Wholesale Trade 2-digit sector | The Sector as a Whole The Wholesale Trade sector comprises establishments engaged in wholesaling merchandise, generally without transformation, and rendering services incidental to the sale of merchandise. The merchandise described in this sector includes the outputs of agriculture, mining, manufacturing, and certain information industries, such as publishing. The wholesaling process is an intermediate step in the distribution of merchandise. Wholesalers are organized to sell or arrange the purchase or sale of (a) goods for resale (i.e., goods sold to other wholesalers or retailers), (b) capital or durable nonconsumer goods, and (c) raw and intermediate materials and supplies used in production. Wholesalers sell merchandise to other businesses and normally operate from a warehouse or office. These warehouses and offices are characterized by having little or no display of merchandise. In addition, neither the design nor the location of the premises is intended to solicit walk-in traffic. Wholesalers do not normally use advertising directed to the general public. Customers are generally reached initially via telephone, in-person marketing, or by specialized advertising that may include Internet and other electronic means. Follow-up orders are either vendor-initiated or client-initiated, generally based on previous sales, and typically exhibit strong ties between sellers and buyers. In fact, transactions are often conducted between wholesalers and clients that have long-standing business relationships. This sector comprises two main types of wholesalers: merchant wholesalers that sell goods on their own account and agents and brokers that arrange sales and purchases for others generally for a commission or fee. (1) Establishments that sell goods on their own account are known as wholesale merchants, distributors, jobbers, drop shippers, and import/export merchants. Also included as wholesale merchants are sales offices and sales branches (but not retail stores) maintained by manufacturing, refining, or mining enterprises apart from their plants or mines for the purpose of marketing their products, and group purchasing organizations primarily purchasing and selling goods on their own account. Merchant wholesale establishments typically maintain their own warehouse, where they receive and handle goods for their customers. Goods are generally sold without transformation, but may include integral functions, such as sorting, packaging, labeling, and other marketing services. (2) Establishments arranging for the purchase or sale of goods owned by others or purchasing goods, generally on a commission basis are known as business-to-business electronic markets, agents and brokers, commission merchants, import/export agents and brokers, auction companies, group purchasing organizations (acting as agents), and manufacturers' representatives. These establishments operate from offices and generally do not own or handle the goods they sell. Some wholesale establishments may be connected with a single manufacturer and promote and sell the particular manufacturer's products to a wide range of other wholesalers or retailers. Other wholesalers may be connected to a retail chain, or limited number of retail chains, and only provide a variety of products needed by that particular retail operation(s). These wholesalers may obtain the products from a wide range of manufacturers. Still other wholesalers may not take title to the goods, but act as agents and brokers for a commission. Although, in general, wholesaling normally denotes sales in large volumes, durable nonconsumer goods may be sold in single units. Sales of capital or durable nonconsumer goods used in the production of goods and services, such as farm machinery, medium- and heavy-duty trucks, and industrial machinery, are always included in wholesale trade. |
| 423 | Merchant Wholesalers, Durable Goods 3-digit subsector | Industries in the Merchant Wholesalers, Durable Goods subsector sell capital or durable goods to other businesses. Merchant wholesalers generally take title to the goods that they sell; in other words, they buy and sell goods on their own account. Durable goods are new or used items generally with a normal life expectancy of three years or more. Durable goods merchant wholesale trade establishments are engaged in wholesaling products, such as motor vehicles, furniture, construction materials, machinery and equipment (including household-type appliances), metals and minerals (except petroleum), sporting goods, toys and hobby goods, recyclable materials, and parts. Agents and brokers primarily engaged in wholesaling durable goods, generally on a commission or fee basis, are classified in Subsector 425, Wholesale Trade Agents and Brokers. |
| 4238 | Machinery, Equipment, and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers 4-digit industry group | This industry group comprises establishments primarily engaged in the merchant wholesale distribution of construction, mining, farm, garden, industrial, service establishment, and transportation machinery, equipment, and supplies. |
| 42382 | Farm and Garden Machinery and Equipment Merchant Wholesalers 5-digit NAICS industry | See industry description for 423820. |
| 423820 | Farm and Garden Machinery and Equipment Merchant Wholesalers 6-digit U.S. detail | This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in the merchant wholesale distribution of specialized machinery, equipment, and related parts generally used in agricultural, farm, and lawn and garden activities. Illustrative Examples: Animal feeders merchant wholesalers Lawnmowers merchant wholesalers Milking machinery and equipment merchant wholesalers Harvesting machinery and equipment merchant wholesalers Planting machinery and equipment merchant wholesalers |
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Index Items
Agricultural implements merchant wholesalers
Agricultural machinery and equipment merchant wholesalers
Blowers, snow and leaf, merchant wholesalers
Combines merchant wholesalers
Conveying equipment, farm, merchant wholesalers
Crop preparation machinery (e.g., cleaning, conditioning, drying) merchant wholesalers
Cultivating machinery and equipment merchant wholesalers
Farm machinery and equipment merchant wholesalers
Feeders, animal, merchant wholesalers
Frost protection machinery merchant wholesalers
Garden machinery and equipment merchant wholesalers
Harvesting machinery and equipment, agriculture, merchant wholesalers
Haying machines merchant wholesalers
Irrigation equipment merchant wholesalers
Land preparation machinery, agricultural, merchant wholesalers
Lawn maintenance machinery and equipment merchant wholesalers
Lawnmowers merchant wholesalers
Milking machinery and equipment merchant wholesalers
Planting machinery and equipment, farm-type, merchant wholesalers
Plows, farm, merchant wholesalers
Poultry equipment merchant wholesalers
Snowblowers, household-type, merchant wholesalers
Sprayers, farm-type, merchant wholesalers
Spreaders, fertilizer, merchant wholesalers
Sprinklers, agricultural, merchant wholesalers
Sprinklers, garden, merchant wholesalers
Tillers, farm and garden, merchant wholesalers
Tractors, farm and garden, merchant wholesalers
How Item Can Help
Manages complex inventory of seasonal machinery and parts with high-value items, optimizing warehouse storage and reducing loss in cold storage facilities.
Automates order routing and fulfillment for both bulk B2B orders and direct-to-consumer retail requests, ensuring accurate delivery windows for farm equipment.
Predicts demand spikes for specific crop seasons to optimize procurement strategies and identifies supply chain bottlenecks before they disrupt distribution.
External Resources
Census.gov NAICS Detail
Official US Census Bureau definition and scope for NAICS 423820.
National Farmland Machinery Inc. (NFMI)
A trade association dedicated to the supply and promotion of agricultural machinery and equipment.
USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service
A government agency providing official data, reports, and resources on the U.S. farming and agricultural equipment sector.
Industrial Directory for Agricultural Equipment
An industry directory listing verified wholesalers, distributors, and suppliers of farm and garden machinery.
