Second-hand trucks: our expertise for many years
The story of Smeets & Zonen began when butcher Henri Smeets bought a truck to transport his cattle and goods. One truck led to a second, then a third, and the truck-trading virus infected the Smeets family, leading to the launch of Smeets & Zonen PVBA in 1976.
Growing second-hand marketIn 1977, Henri’s son Jaak started with the sale of new Iveco trucks. After a while, he started venturing into the ever growing second-hand market.
Different field of expertiseJohan, Henri’s second son, took charge of the workshop. In the early eighties the third son, Robert, was put in charge of Smeetrans Transport. This includes the garage and the transport operations. For years, Henri’s three sons have all had their own responsibilities within the Smeets group. In 2009, Johan decided to leave the family business. Jaak and Robert both remain active in their respective fields.
Strong growthSmeets & Zonen have never stopped growing. On the sheer basis of word of mouth advertising, and in spite of its unfavourable location, the truck dealer bought and sold 1,300 second-hand trucks per year. More and more customers found their way to Peer for their second-hand truck.
Third generationChristophe, son of Jaak, joined the company in 1996. He took on a large part of the purchasing department and built a strong purchasing team. Pieter, Robert’s son, also joined the family business in 2008. Til 03/19, Jaak, Pieter and Christophe together where responsible for Smeets & Zonen. Today Christophe & Jaak only.
Expansion in Bree/FranceIn 2017, Smeets & Zonen takes an important step towards the future. The company relocates from Peer to a large landholding of thirteen hectares and a building of 20,000 m² in Bree. This enables Smeets & Zonen to further expand the company. The purpose? Serving the customers even better and ensuring the further growth of the company. Also Smz parts is located there. Alos we have a garage in Aulnat near Clermont Ferrand (France).
Separation Smeets & Zn – SmeetransAt the beginning of 2019, Pieter Smeets resigned from Smeets & Zn. He and Robert decided that they wanted to continue alone and an agreement was reached in March 2021, whereby the 2 companies are fully autonomous.
Would you like to know more about the service of Smeets & Zonen? Or do you have specific questions regarding our offer of second-hand trucks? Please feel free to contact us without further obligation.