Southeastern President Charlie Patterson to Retire, Replaced by Gourley
Charles Patterson, president of Southeastern Equipment Co., announced he is retiring after 46 years with the company. During his tenure, Patterson held a variety of positions, including sales representative, branch manager, regional manager, and vice president before becoming president in 2009.
Southeastern Equipment’s owner and founder, William Baker, originally hired Patterson after he graduated from Ohio University.
“Being part of the Southeastern family for nearly 50 years has been amazing,” said Patterson. “I’m looking forward to this next chapter in my life, spending time with my wife Denise, our kids and our grandchildren.”
“Charlie has been a loyal and constant partner in growing our company,” said Baker. “I consider him a close friend and we have been through a lot together.”
Patterson and Baker have selected Mickey Gourley to fill the role of president, effective Jan. 1. Gourley joined Southeastern in 19999 as an outside sales representative after earning a B.A. in business from Muskingham University. He quickly moved into increasing levels of management and responsibility after demonstrating his commitment to the company’s customers and products. He was promoted to regional manager in 2011 and then to vice president in 2016. With 20 years of experience in sales and customer service, Gourley is considered uniquely positioned to provide the leadership required for continued growth.
“We have great expectations for Mickey in his new role,” added Baker. “He will be an important player as our business continues to grow. I know he is capable and ready.”
As regional manager, Gourley worked closely with Patterson to oversee all vendor relations. He controlled and planned equipment inventory and has developed extensive knowledge of the product lines, while leading multiple groups within Southeastern.
“Mickey is a great member of our leadership team, and we work well together,” said Thor Hess, executive vice president at Southeastern Equipment. “I’m very happy with Charlie’s and my grandfather’s decision. I have big plans for my family’s company, and I am excited to work with Mickey as we build Southeastern’s future.”
Based in Cambridge, Ohio, Southeastern Equipment is No. 60 on the RER 100.
About the Author
Michael Roth
Editor
Michael Roth has covered the equipment rental industry full time for RER since 1989 and has served as the magazine’s editor in chief since 1994. He has nearly 30 years experience as a professional journalist. Roth has visited hundreds of rental centers and industry manufacturers, written hundreds of feature stories for RER and thousands of news stories for the magazine and its electronic newsletter RER Reports. Roth has interviewed leading executives for most of the industry’s largest rental companies and manufacturers as well as hundreds of smaller independent companies. He has visited with and reported on rental companies and manufacturers in Europe, Central America and Asia as well as Mexico, Canada and the United States. Roth was co-founder of RER Reports, the industry’s first weekly newsletter, which began as a fax newsletter in 1996, and later became an online newsletter. Roth has spoken at conventions sponsored by the American Rental Association, Associated Equipment Distributors, California Rental Association and other industry events and has spoken before industry groups in several countries. He lives and works in Los Angeles when he’s not traveling to cover industry events.