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Big Win Boost for New Customer’s Business

Finning sales rep Ryan Finnbogason with Finning Winning grand prize winner Gavin Bos.

“When I bought my second machine, my sales rep Ryan Finnbogason gave me a key, as an entry into the Finning Winning contest. When he told me I had a chance to win a lease on a new skid steer for a year, I thought what a cool prize,” said Gavin Bos, owner of King Civil Works located in Abbotsford, B.C. “I had no idea when I went online to enter that I’d be the grand prize winner. This is amazing – I’ve never won anything in my life!” Ryan got to share the good news. “I was thrilled Gavin won. What a great break for a young guy who has just started his own business.”

Having just bought a Cat 259D skid steer, Gavin now gets to run his new machine for free for a year. “This is huge – it’s going to help me out a lot.  It’s like 100% profit for my company, all I have to pay is diesel and insurance.” King Civil Works is a one-man operation that Gavin started a couple of years ago in his early 20’s. “I do a bit of everything, landscaping, road work, civil works, foundations, parking lots and gas stations in the Fraser Valley, from Chilliwack to Vancouver – wherever the work takes me,” says Gavin. “My grandfather and my dad were both in the construction business and that’s how I learned to operate equipment. I’ve been working in this business my whole life. I started helping my dad when I was eight years old. Once I honed my skills on the machines I decided to start my own business – I guess it’s in my genes.” 

Gavin is a fairly new customer of Finning’s but has been a long-time fan of Cat equipment. “I’ve always loved Cat equipment, it’s top of the line for me, so I have a Cat sticker on the window of my F150. That’s how I met Ryan,” laughs Gavin. “I was working up at Eagle Mountain in B.C. and Ryan saw the sticker on my truck and approached me and asked me why I wasn’t running Cat equipment and invited me to demo one. That’s when I bought my first Cat machine, the 305 mini-excavator, and then when I needed a new skid steer I went back and bought the 259D.” It was that purchase that earned Gavin the key that won him the one-year lease on the skid steer.

The whole reason he invested in his own equipment is because he has a real passion for what he does. “I don’t feel like I’m going to work – it’s fun for me,” says Gavin. “And I’ll definitely be sticking with Cat. I’ve run all sorts of machines, anything you can think of, I’ve operated it and these machines are so comfortable and so smooth. It’s hard to explain from an operator’s perspective, but some machines are extremely jerky, but with Cat, it’s just the way they’re set - perfect for speed, comfort, pulling grade, loading – so for me, any future machine is going to be a Cat.”

As part of the contest Finning is also contributing $5,000 to a charity of Gavin’s choice and he has chosen to support the Canadian Red Cross B.C. wild fires fund. “It’s so close to home with all the fires burning in B.C. and I just thought this would be a way I could give back and show support for the community,” says Gavin. The wild fires really hit close to home for Ryan whose parents were evacuated from their home and displaced for over a month. “It really meant a lot to me that Gavin chose to support the Canadian Red Cross B.C. Fires Appeal with so many people displaced and impacted by the fires in B.C.” said Ryan.  “His donation will be a welcome addition to the fundraising efforts taking place across Western Canada for all those impacted.”

The Finning Winning contest ran April to July, giving customers the chance to get a key to enter to win anytime they attended an event or trade show, requested a quote, or rented, purchased or traded in a machine. By going online and entering the code on the key you were entered in the grand prize draw and had a chance to win hundreds of instant prizes. Congratulations to all the winners.