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Cooke Rentals celebrates opening of new Maiden, N.C., facility

By Brock Huffstutler

January 10, 2023

Cooke Rentals exteriorCooke Rentals has opened a new general tool and equipment rental location in Maiden, N.C. The new 26,000-sq.-ft. facility was greeted with a grand opening celebration on Wednesday, Sep. 28.

“Everybody in here says that this is like the Taj Mahal and that it’s awesome,” says Chad Cooke, Cooke Rentals president. “From the automatic front door to the Big Ass Fans and the mezzanine to the wash bay — our customers are just ecstatic.”

The new facility sits on 8 acres and includes 3,000 sq. ft. of retail space; 1,500 sq. ft. of office space; a 3,200-sq.-ft. shop; 800 sq. ft. devoted to parts and the same for a washing system with cleanout pit. Another 12,000 sq. ft. of the property is dedicated to a combination of indoor and outdoor storage.

A more efficient process for loading and unloading equipment was a major inspiration for the new location, according to Cooke.

“It was about the traffic pattern and easing the ability of customers to get in and out,” he says. “Before, it was a traffic jam every morning. Customers were backed out into the street and blocking a main highway. My main concern was the safety of customers and my employees. Now, we’ve got three lanes about 300 feet long. It’s nice because I can have a tractor trailer pull in here with a load of light towers to unload, come around the building to a vacant spot and unload without anybody in the lot. That would never have happened in the old place.”

Approximately 200 guests attended the open house at the new Maiden location, where customers mingled with special guests including American Rental Association (ARA) CEO Tony Conant and Dan Hooks, CERP, president, Party Reflections, Charlotte, N.C., who also serves as ARA board chair. “It was unbelievable who all made the trip. It was very well-supported by the sales reps in the rental industry. We also had the president of Takeuchi US [Jeff Stewart] and president of Fifth Third Bank in the Carolinas region [Lee Fite] here speaking as well. We did the 25-year Small Business Administration loan with Fifth Third; Cooke Rentals is like the signature of who they want to help — they love small business, and they want to work with them. It was just awesome,” Cooke says.

The Cooke Rentals team also takes pride in the fact that the company’s brand-new structure already is an award winner.

“The building won the Metal Building Contractors & Erectors Association of the Carolinas’ 2022 Building of the Year Competition — Retail Division. My builder, my architect and everybody is just ecstatic over that. Now it’s up for the national award,” Cooke says.

The dedication of the new Maiden facility to tool and equipment rentals frees up space in Cook Rentals’ neighboring facility in Denver, N.C., to focus on event rentals exclusively.

“We left the party in the existing building, but we’re renovating and expanding that building as we speak,” Cooke says.

In addition to the adjacent presences in Maiden and Denver, Cooke Rentals also maintains locations in the North Carolina communities of Mount Airy and Cornelius.