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Inc., and its divisions FerrisIndustries and Giant-Vac, toform a family of companiesdedicated to providing premiumresidential and commerciallawn care equipment. WhenSimplicity was purchased byBriggs & Stratton in 2004, thecompany and all of its divisions,including Snapper, becamepart of the Briggs & StrattonPower Products Group. Whatbegan over 100 years ago witha commitment to innovationand quality continues to moveforward with a dedication tomaintaining its rightful placeamong the leaders in the lawnand garden industry.

THE PRODUCTSnapper manufactures premiumlawn care and snow removalequipment for residential andcommercial customers. The cur-rent product line includes walk-behind mowers, rear-engineriders, lawn and garden trac-tors, zero-turn mowers, com-mercial mowers, snowthrowers,tillers, and more.• Snapper offers both push

and self-propelled walk-behindmowers. Its mulching mowersare designed for efficient recy-cling of lawn trimmings, leaves,and pine needles. Snapperrear-discharge mowers featurea rugged cast-aluminum deckand a three-speed transmis-sion. Hi-Wheel mowers arerugged and maneuverable, featuring a 26-inchcutting width.

• The best-selling Snapper rear-engine rider is apractical and durable machine that provides itsowners with years of trouble-free service. Allmodels offer the same excellent visibility, per-formance, and 3-in-1 convertibility from dis-charge to bagging to mulching.

• For larger mowing jobs, Snapper provides acomplete line of lawn and garden tractors. Allfeature hydrostatic (automatic) transmissions,high-performance engines, rugged durability,and a beautiful quality of cut. Snapper gardentractors are capable of handling plows, tillers,and other attachments that make yard and gar-den chores easier.

• The Snapper product line includes several modelsof zero-turn mowers built for homeowners. The250Z Series is a compact, low-profile machine forgetting into tight spaces. The 350Z Series takeszero-turn performance to the next level by com-bining dual hydrostatic pumps and wheel motorswith big mowing decks to make short work oflarge properties. The 450Z Series boasts a power-ful engine, large mower deck, big tires, and dualfuel tanks that deliver commercial grade perform-ance. All feature twin-stick control.

• Snapper manufactures a complete line of com-mercial mowing products for the landscaping

professional under the brand name Snapper Pro.From gear-driven mid-size walk-behind mowersto hydrostatic mid-size walk-behinds to mid-mount zero-turn mowers and beyond, SnapperPro has become the fastest-growing brand in thecommercial mowing industry.

• Snapper also makes snowthrowers, rear-tinetillers, field and brush mowers, chipper shred-ders, leaf blowers, leaf vacuums, pressure wash-ers, generators, and utility vehicles.

RECENT DEVELOPMENTSSnapper continues to develop innovative productsfor both the residential and commercial mowingindustries. Model year 2006 brought customers ahost of new products. The company announced anew line of 21-inch walk-behind mowers calledEasy LineTM and a new high-performance lawntractor, the LT200 Series. The LT200 line includesfour powerful, easy-to-use lawn tractors — allwith hydrostatic transmissions. A tight turningradius, convenient dash controls, and simple footpedal operations turn mowing the lawn into aleisure activity.

The Snapper Pro 2500 Pro Series commercialzero-turn mowers (formerly known as Fast Back)now feature Roll Over Protection Structures(ROPS) as standard. And a new Snapper Pro3500X Pro Series will feature a 30-horsepower

unit with 61-inch mowing deckand a 32-horsepower unit with73-inch mowing deck.

PROMOTIONFirst and foremost, Snapper ispromoted via a network ofauthorized retailers. As such,many of its promotional effortsare designed to help local bus-inesses advertise Snapper pro-ducts. Signs, point-of-purchasedisplays, collateral literature,newspaper ads, and radio andTV commercials encouragecustomers to visit their localSnapper retailer.

Homeowners can also learnabout Snapper products atwww.snapper.com. The sitepromotes every Snapper modeland provides technical speci-fications, as well as touting special promotions and retailfinancing programs. Once acustomer has researched a par-ticular product, he or she canuse the site’s retailer locator tofind the nearest retailer and seethat product in person.

One constant over the yearshas been the Snapper Snappin’Turtle logo. While its appearancehas evolved over time, one ver-sion or another has gracedequipment, collateral advertis-ing, and signage for more than50 years. Today, the Snappin’Turtle logo is one of the mostrecognized icons in the lawn andgarden industry.

BRAND VALUESThe Snapper brand promise is “It’s That Easy.”Studies have shown that homeowners considerSnapper products to be easy to own, easy to use,and easy to maintain. To promote this message,Snapper introduced a brand campaign to promotethe “It’s That Easy” message. Future Hall-of-Fame quarterback Brett Favre, an easygoing guywho loves to mow his own lawn, is the cam-paign’s spokesperson.

THE MARKETThe outdoor power equipment industry is an $8.5 billion market. Its biggest segment, totaling$6.5 billion, is consumer lawn and garden equip-ment, including rotary walk-behind mowers, rear-engine riding mowers, front-engine lawn andgarden tractors, tillers, and snowthrowers.

The size of the market reflects the current loveaffair Americans have with their lawns. In nearlyevery neighborhood, homeowners compete witheach other for the best-looking lawn. Their maintool in this quest is the lawn mower. According toOutdoor Power Equipment Industry statistics,Americans use nearly 40 million lawn mowers togroom their lawns.

ACHIEVEMENTSSnapper is one of the best-known names in theoutdoor power equipment industry for manufac-turing high-quality mowers. Over the years,Snapper has been a leader in developing revolu-tionary lawn care equipment, with numerouspatents for mower innovations, deck designs, andtransmission methods, including the variabledrive friction disc, a highly reliable drive systemstill used today in rear-engine riders, walk-behindmowers, and snowthrowers.

Among Snapper’s many industry firsts are thefirst self-propelled rotary walk-behind mower, thefirst rear-engine riding mower, and the revolu-tionary Ninja® mulching mower blade.

HISTORYSnapper has a long and proud heritage dating backto the late 1800s. The company began in Georgia in

1894 as the Southern Saw Works, providing prod-ucts for the lumber industry. But in the 1940s, withthe housing boom that followed World War II, lawnsbegan replacing thousands of acres of Georgiapines. That’s when William Smith, owner ofSouthern Saw, purchased the patents of Snappin’Turtle Mowers of Florida and began producinglawn mowers. His revolutionary mower featured arotary blade design and is considered by many tobe the first rotary mower ever produced.

Building on the success of the Snappin’Turtlemower, the company designed and patented thefirst self-propelled rotary mower. As the size oflawns grew, many customers wanted to ride ratherthan walk when mowing, and the company pro-duced a series of sulkies that allowed customers toride by essentially being pulled by the walk-behindmower. The next step was toproduce a true riding mower,so Snapper placed a seatand a steering mecha-nism on the front of oneof its self-propelled mow-ers. The popular rear-enginerider was born.

In 1962, Snapper intro-duced a totally new designfor its rear-engine rider, the

Comet. Many of the engineering innovations anddramatic styling changes introduced with theComet are still reflected in today’s Snapper riders,the number-one rear-engine rider sold in theUnited States.

Over the next 20 years, Snapper continued togrow its product line, with such innovative addi-tions as lawn tractors, snowthrowers, and rear-tinetillers. Commercial cutting equipment joined theofferings in the late 1980s. The Ninja mulchingblade was developed for walk-behind mowers andriders a few years later. In 1997, a single-hand joystick-controlled zero-turn rider was introduced.

In late 2002, Snapper joinedSimplicity Manufacturing,

❍ There are more than 4,500 independentSnapper retailers nationwide.

❍ Several of Snapper’s first rotary mowers areon display at the Smithsonian Institute inWashington, DC.

❍ In the movie Forrest Gump, Tom Hanks —as the title character — used a Snapper rear-engine rider to mow the local football field.

❍ Snapper is the official mower of Sea World– Orlando and Busch Gardens–Tampa.

THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUTSNAPPER