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About Gardner

Gardner is one of the largest family owned Parts Distributors and Value Added Service providers for the Outdoor Power Equipment industry and is growing to better serve our current customers while continuing to develop new opportunities in new territories and market segments.

We are based in Columbus, Ohio with distribution centers in Columbus, Ohio; Franklin, Massachusetts; and Jacksonville, Florida, Greensboro, NC and Arlington, Tennessee. With approximately 1M Sq Ft of warehouse and distribution facilities and on average 425 year round associates across these locations, Gardner can efficiently serve all 50 U.S. States.

Our Vision: “To be the trusted brand steward and industry leader in channel management providing solutions that drive growth and profitability for our partners”.

Our foundation rests on the strength of all our services including: Sales & Marketing, Customer Service, Technology, Physical Assets and Education. We measure our success with high fill rates and on-time deliveries. Our goal is to always provide our customers with a quality of service that is both quick and complete and at the lowest possible cost.

Leadership

John Finn | Chairman

John F. Finn is Chairman of Gardner, Inc., a supply chain management company. He has served in this position since 1974.

Mr. Finn was a lead director at Cardinal Health for 21 years and is now retired from the Cardinal Health board. He is a trustee on the board of JP Morgan Mutual Funds and a director of Greif, Inc. He also serves on the board of The Columbus Association for the Performing Arts (CAPA). In the past, Mr. Finn has served on the boards of The Crane Group, Fisher College of Business, The Columbus Academy, Columbus School for Girls, The Johns Company, Saint Ann’s Hospital, Mount Carmel Hospital, St. Charles Preparatory, and I Know I Can – a college access program for inner-city youth.

Mr. Finn received a BA in economics from The Ohio State University and an MBA in finance from Harvard Business School.


Ted Finn | CEO

Ted Finn is the CEO of Gardner. He has served in this position since 2008 and represents the third generation of the Finn family to own and operate the Gardner family of companies. Prior to Gardner, Ted held various roles at a Technology M&A investment bank as well as Deloitte from 1999 to 2008. Ted currently serves on the Board of Directors for two similar sized private companies in Columbus, Ohio. He has previously served on the boards of CAPA and OPEESA as well.

Ted graduated from Kenyon College with a degree in Economics in 1999 and an MBA from Dartmouth College in 2006.


Todd Slawson | Corporate President

Todd Slawson is the Corporate President for Gardner and has served in this position since January 2020. Todd has demonstrated notable achievements throughout his career in the areas of sales, client & customer service, and operations. He has served in numerous roles for an industry leading provider of manufactured and distributed products and services.

Todd graduated from Clarkson University with a degree in Engineering in 1990 and an MBA from The Ohio State University in 2002.