Gen-Y Hitch is celebrating its 10-year anniversary. Since establishing the business in 2012, the company has grown to employ over 60 individuals across all divisions.
“Two or so years in, I remember me and Joel (Joel Helmuth, then sales manager) discussing if we could sell one hitch a day, we would be killing it,” said Carl Borkholder, Gen-Y Hitch’s founder. “I do not know how many hitches we sell a day now, it is in the hundreds, a couple hundred actually… it is incredible to think about that. We thought we would be okay with the first goal, and this is where we are now. That was not that long ago, maybe six to eight years ago.”
In 2018 the company expanded to include co-owner Dan Miller and investor Scott Tuttle. At the time, the company still outsourced manufacturing to local U.S. partners.
In 2019, the company started to manufacture components in-house.
“A pivotal moment happened when Scott and Dan bought into the company. We catapulted the company to the next level,” Borkholder said. “Manufacturing was a key part of that. Today, we are 95% to 98% in-house. Without our own manufacturing, we were restricted by other people when trying to manufacture products. It was a pretty big deal to get that done.”
Gen-Y Hitch services various towing markets. The company specializes in Torsion-Flex Technology, which provides a smoother ride when towing.
According to Gen-Y Hitch, Torsion-Flex technology has revolutionized the way people tow today.
“It is amazing to see what happens when you stay at something and do not give up. Especially when you hire high-quality individuals with the same mindset; everything is possible,” Borkholder said. “Our focus has been and remains to be to create new products and innovating our existing product lines to make them better.”
Donna Schmucker, company marketing director said, “We are here to serve, not only our customers but also each other within the organization. We keep the needs of team members and customers at the heart of our work. We believe that a strong and service-driven culture is essential to our success. That is a key ingredient that has led us to where we are today.”
