James Hebe, former president of Freightliner Trucks, has returned to the trucking industry as an International dealer in greater Vancouver, British Columbia.
Though he started his career at International Harvester in 1972, Hebe rose to prominence in the 1990s as head of Freightliner, helping the company become the market share leader for Class 8 trucks. He resigned in 2001 during a downturn in the industry.
After he left Freightliner, Hebe and a group of investors acquired Seagrave Fire Apparatus, a fire-truck manufacturer. He became president and chief executive officer of the company, from which he later resigned. Now he has come full circle back to International Truck and Engine, where he began as a management trainee in Boston.
“Mr. Hebe is an aggressive, high-energy leader with a strong passion for the truck business,” says David Johanneson, International’s group vice president for sales, marketing and distribution. “He has an extensive knowledge of the truck industry and a great deal of experience building strong customer relationships and serving the needs of the marketplace.”
Hebe will own and lead Co-Van International Trucks, a dealership in business since 1973. It’s based in Coquitlam, a city just east of Vancouver. Hebe says he acquired the dealership because he sees opportunities at International.
“I have been energized by my discussions with International executives about the company’s future product strategies,” Hebe says. “The breadth of International’s product and service offerings is unsurpassed.”
