“Spending the majority of my life in and around Birkey’s, I continue to watch our industry evolve for both Birkey’s and our customers," Foster said. "Birkey’s has had a long history of strong leadership that I always have admired. It is an absolute honor and privilege to assume this great responsibility and lead our employee-owners to help our customers feed the world and build communities."
As President, Foster will assume direct oversight over the operations of the business. Mike Hedge will continue as the Chief Executive Officer, with overall leadership of the business and strategic initiatives as well as overseeing accounting, finance, and IT.
Birkey's Farm Store has served Illinois and Indiana since 1954. What was once an operation in a small shop has grown to a network of 18 locations and 450-plus employees. Birkey's is headquartered in Champaign, Illinois, and the company owns and operates a network of full-service Case IH agricultural and Case construction equipment stores throughout Illinois and western Indiana.