Nelson Leasing, Inc. Company History

Dale Nelson began working as a teenager for a company named Auto Safety Service in 1951. By 1954, Dale purchased the business and renamed it Dale Nelson Auto Safety Service. The establishment was located on Third Street West in Willmar, MN in an 80 x 50 foot building. When he first bought the business, it was primarily an automobile repair garage, but as time went on, Dale began to specialize in heavy duty trucks. In March of 1963, the business became a full-fledged International dealership, named Nelson Leasing Inc. dba Nelson International, providing truck sales, leasing, rentals, service, and parts.

On March 15th, 1967, the business was relocated to Highway 12 in Willmar, with a new 18,000 square foot building which would be the new home for Nelson Leasing Inc.

In 1968, three additional bays were built onto the body shop.

In 1973, the new leasing building was built.

In 1982, a new body shop was built in Willmar, and the old body shop changed into the tire department.

In March of 1987, the business expanded its territory by purchasing Red River International, with locations in both Fargo and Bismarck, ND.

In 1999, the Fargo trailer shop building at 4225 Main Ave was purchased from Kjos investments.

In July of 2000, the Bismarck location was moved from 1900 Industrial Drive to a building Nelson purchased from Jmar Inc., which Dale also added an additional 150ft of service, office and parts area at 1716 Revere Drive in Bismarck.

In 2007, the Fargo location added a new connected parts warehouse, two additional drive-through service bays and a wash bay on the current building located at 4235 Main Ave.

In January of 2012, Nelson International built and opened a brand new building at 3421 Energy Dr. in Dickinson, ND.

In April of 2016, Nelson International expanded their coverage yet again by taking over their former subcontractor location, Drummers Diesel, located at 1422 Gateway Dr. NE in East Grand Forks, MN.

Currently, Nelson International has 5 dealer locations with 8 subcontractors serving as the sole Navistar Dealer in North Dakota as well as serving a portion of western Minnesota. With over 60 years in business, Nelson International understands the importance of their role, which is to help their customer’s become as profitable as possible by providing an excellent product and superb customer service with as little downtime as possible. Between the dealer locations and the subcontractors, Nelson International provides the best truck dealer coverage in the area.

Contact Us

Come by today and experience our superior service and selection! We look forward to serving you!