Bad Boy Mowers announced Wednesday that it will expand its campus in Batesville and create 300 new jobs over the next five years.
In a news release, the company said it will build a new paint facility and shipping center while continuing to add manufacturing equipment. The company said it will also move its corporate office and truck shop to existing facilities and continue to expand its transportation fleet.
“Bad Boy is committed to growing our Batesville roots deeper than ever, while furthering our reputation of quality, value and performance across the USA,” CEO Peter Ballantyne said. “Through new jobs and state-of-the-art facilities, we are showing our industry — and the rest of the country — what Arkansas can do.”
Founded in 2000, the company began production in 2002, manufacturing and selling zero-turn mowers, sub-compact tractors, outdoor landscaping tools, parts and accessories. The company sells its products to retailers and more than 1,100 independent dealers nationwide. It has operations at 102 Industrial Drive in Batesville.
The company has expanded multiple times, adding capacity to accommodate increases in demand for its zero-turn mower, rotary cutter product lines and accessories. It had about 800 employees in Batesville as of 2020 and is one of the region’s larger manufacturers. In 2019, the Sterling Group LP of Houston paid $260.9 million for an equity stake in the company.
“When Arkansans found great businesses, find success, and expand their companies, the entire state thrives. Bad Boy Mowers is an outstanding example of those compounding benefits, as shown by today’s commitment to create 300 new jobs in Batesville,” Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a news release.
The Arkansas Economic Development Commission said the expansion is receiving a $1.2 million Community Development Block Grant. The project also qualifed for AEDC’s Tax Back program and seven years of its Create Rebate program.
Tax Back provides sales and use tax refunds on the purchase of building materials and taxable machinery, and Create Rebate is an annual cash rebate based on the number of jobs added by a company and targeted wages.
AEDC Executive Director Clint O’Neal called Bad Boy “a true Arkansas entrepreneurial success story.”
“In Arkansas, entrepreneurs can dream up a business and know they have the opportunity to run a successful company,” he said. “Bad Boy Mowers has created a thriving business that has created hundreds of jobs for Arkansans as well as top-of-the-line lawn equipment for Americans.”
Batesville Mayor Rick Elumbaugh said the expansion brings employment opportunities and “underscores our unwavering drive for advancement in Batesville.”
Sign up for Daily E-news
