Ward AG Products, Inc. - Page 5

                                        - 5 -                                         

          petitioner's accounts receivables and inventory.  Lykes Agri                
          Sales never foreclosed on petitioner.                                       
               Petitioner did not own any farm land.                                  
          C.   Ward's Relationship With Petitioner's Customers                        
               1.   Ward's Expertise                                                  
               Ward spent much of his time with farmers in the Hastings               
          area.  Petitioner's customers valued Ward's expertise and greatly           
          respected him.  They sought and relied on his advice.  They                 
          sometimes called him at night at his home to ask for help.  He              
          was knowledgeable, helpful, and concerned about their problems.             
          Ward visited his customers' farms daily, inspected their soil and           
          crops, took leaf and soil samples, and advised them about                   
          fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides.  He showed his customers           
          how to apply the chemicals.  Ward charged for testing soil                  
          samples but he did not charge for advice.                                   
               2.   Ward's and Petitioner's Financial Assistance to Farmers           
               Ward often gave financial assistance to farmers.  Many farms           
          in the Hastings area were heavily mortgaged during the years at             
          issue.  Harvest and market conditions in the Hastings area                  
          fluctuated greatly during the years in issue.  Ward sometimes               
          cosigned notes for farmers and lent them money.  He often gave              
          farmers credit because they could not pay for merchandise.                  
               Ward borrowed money from a bank to pay for the merchandise             
          that he ordered for the farmers.  He deposited the borrowed money           





Page:  Previous  1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  17  18  19  Next

Last modified: May 25, 2011