LAKELAND, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 24, 2026--
Spark Dealer Group has completed the acquisition of Commercial Lawn Equipment, an outdoor power equipment dealer serving Lakeland and Central Florida. The transaction closed July 31. Terms were not disclosed.
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The acquisition gives Spark a presence in Lakeland as the company builds out its Florida operations. Spark recently acquired Grass Pro Shop in Tampa and Lawn Equipment Center in Naples, where Spark also recently opened a new location.
Commercial Lawn Equipment serves landscape professionals, municipalities and homeowners across the Lakeland market. The dealership carries commercial mower, turf and handheld equipment from brands including Wright, Toro, Hustler, Ferris, Stihl, Echo and Shindaiwa, with more brands to be added.
“Closing on Commercial Lawn Equipment continues our rapid expansion across Florida,” said Jon Salinas, CEO of Spark Dealer Group. “With locations in Tampa, Sarasota, Bradenton, Naples, Belleview and now Lakeland, we can put more inventory in the state, build deeper relationships with manufacturers and give our stores more ways to solve problems for customers. We’ve built a strong presence along Florida’s Gulf Coast and are expanding into Central Florida, with plans to continue east. That coverage will help us serve customers across the state.”
Commercial Lawn Equipment will become part of Mowers Inc., Spark’s dealership operation in Florida. The Lakeland store will remain open throughout the transition, with equipment sales, parts and service continuing for existing customers.
“Commercial customers judge a dealership by what happens when they need something,” said Ray Harney, director of market development for Mowers Inc. in Florida. “Do we have the equipment? Yes. Can we get the part? Of course. Can we get their machine back to work? Definitely! Adding Lakeland gives us another place to execute for customers.”
With the addition of Commercial Lawn Equipment, Spark Dealer Group now operates 20 outdoor power equipment dealership locations.
About Spark Dealer Group
Spark Dealer Group is a long-term owner of independent outdoor power equipment dealerships across the United States. The company partners with local operators to maintain dealership identity while providing centralized support to strengthen operations over time.
About Commercial Lawn Equipment
Commercial Lawn Equipment is an outdoor power equipment dealer serving Lakeland and Central Florida. The dealership provides commercial mower, turf and handheld equipment to landscape professionals, municipalities and homeowners throughout the region.
Spark Dealer Group Completes Acquisition of Commercial Lawn Equipment in Lakeland, Florida
DENVER (AP) — Fresh off the best electoral performance in half a century, Democratic officials and strategists converged on Denver Thursday to plot a further course for the party and revel in their gains.
The two-day What's Next conference, hosted by a new group called Majority Democrats, was put on politicos' calendars months ago as another stepping stone as the party charted its way out of its post-2024 political wilderness.
Now Democrats will have to figure out what to do with majorities in both chambers of Congress and control of at least 12 new state legislative chambers.
“The fever has broken. The fog has lifted," said Mitch Landrieu, the former Democratic mayor of New Orleans. “And now it falls upon us to rebuild the foundation of this great nation and to fulfill the promise of America.”
Barely a week after voters repudiated President Donald Trump and his Republican Party, Texas Sen.-elect James Talarico said Democrats must work with him. Voters are hungry for results and can't wait two years for Trump to leave office, he said, urging Democrats to avoid both intraparty fights and excessive caution.
“We can’t let them down,” Talarico said. “We can’t play it safe. We can’t get bogged down in the same petty fights. We can’t settle for nibbling around the edges, or results people will only feel a decade from now.”
Former Attorney General Eric Holder echoed that theme, saying now “is not a time for timidity" and warning Democrats against aimlessly reaching for bipartisanship.
“For too long, Democrats, unlike Republicans, have been uncomfortable with the acquisition and the use of power," Holder said. "This must end.”
Armed with charts, graphs and preliminary data about who voted and why, Democratic data analysts tried to explain a shockingly widespread victory that few saw coming. Democrats won because so many 2024 Trump voters stayed home, said David Shor, one of the party’s most prominent number crunchers.
“The reality is that most of the voters we lost two years ago still have not become Democrats,” Shor said. To win them back, the new Democratic majority needs to stay focused on addressing the economic concerns that are top of mind for voters, he said.
The conference features newly elected Democrats and potential presidential candidates, including former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro.
It's a who's-who of rising Democratic talent and a showcase for the party.
The gathering is also a showcase of sorts for Denver, which remains in the hunt for the party's 2028 convention after last hosting one in 2008. The city is selling itself as a modern example of a purple state turning solid blue.
The Democrats gathered at a concert venue in central Denver. Attendees could crowd into the auditorium or watch speakers on a Jumbotron in an outside plaza flanked by food trucks and, on the horizon, 14,000-foot-high snowcapped peaks.
The group Majority Democrats seeks to bridge the traditional left-center splits that have riven the party for years, particularly since the 2024 election that returned President Donald Trump to the White House. It particularly positions itself as the voice of a new generation of party leaders tired of old ideological and establishment battles, and the speaker list skews noticeably young.
Rob Sand, who was elected Iowa’s first Democratic governor in nearly two decades, explained his decision to hold town hall meetings in every county and allow anyone to ask questions unfiltered. Voters want politicians who listen and answer their questions honestly, he said.
“There’s literally no question that I can be asked, no answer that I could give, no matter how bad, that would speak more loudly than me handing the microphone to someone at my event who says they are Republican,” Sand said.
The conference also includes various party leaders, such as the likely next House speaker, Hakeem Jeffries, who has engendered suspicion among some on the left who continue to target the party's Washington power structure.
Cooper reported from Phoenix.
Rob Sand, governor-elect of Iowa, speaks during a Democratic conference Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Mitch Landrieu, former mayor of New Orleans, speaks during a Democratic conference Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Eric Holder, Jr., chairman of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, speaks during a Democratic conference Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Mitch Landrieu, former mayor of New Orleans, speaks during a Democratic conference Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
James Talarico, senator-elect of Texas, speaks during a Democratic conference Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Denver Mayor Mike Johnston speaks during a Democratic conference Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Charlotte Swasey, director of analytics for the Searchlight Institute, speaks during a Democratic conference Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Sen.-elect Josh Turek, D-Iowa, moves to the Senate Subway in the U.S. Capitol, Monday, Nov. 9, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Sen.-elect James Talarico, D-Texas, arrives at the U.S. Capitol, Monday, Nov. 9, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Rep. Katherine Clark, D-Mass., the House minority whip, from left, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Chair Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., hold hands during a watch party at a hotel on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
