Dehnco powered by Calstone

In the beginning, Jim Ecclestone was looking for new business opportunities to fill the manufacturing plant and grow his business. A one-page piece of literature came across his desk showing a picture of a Packing table made mostly of steel. This product looked perfect for Calstone to manufacture. The literature had a phone number on it in which Jim called and reached a Mr. Al Dehnert, owner of Dehnco Equipment & Supplies. He was located in Barrington Illinois, just outside of Chicago. Jim told Al that he was going to make this product for him one day! Al explained to Jim that his product was made in Sweden and was shipped by container to his small warehouse. He then handled distribution from there.

Al started Dehnco in 1976 and brought solutions to the warehouse industry. Al was the only salesperson until his brother Don Dehnert joined him in 1977. Together they were the sales team during the day and would pick and ship orders after hours and over the weekend. If asked they would travel and provide the installation of the equipment to continue building their reputation. Al explained to Jim, that he was having a meeting with the owner of the Swedish manufacturing company in hopes to get exclusive rights to the product for the USA. A few weeks had past and finally Al called Jim back explaining that the meeting didn’t go as planned and he was only given exclusive rights to sell the product in Illinois. This is where the remarkable partnership began. 

Calstone started manufacturing the Packbench product line for Dehnco and the 2 men became instant friends. They made a promise to each other to never let each other down and this friendship grew as the years went by. They supported each other as they grew the businesses together, developing new products and solutions to help the inefficiencies & bottlenecks in warehouses. They enjoyed many business trips developing a strong customer base. They watched each other raise their beautiful families and now both companies are second generation run.

The Ecclestone’s and Dehnert’s not only give the “true” meaning to partnership but have truly become one big, blended family. Today, our families continue to work together to build and grow our business and are expanding to include second and third generations in our future success.

Contact Dehnco today for your next project: www.dehnco.com