Our History

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Our company was originally established in 1968 by founder Charles H. Sumrall. The business initially specialized in truck and trailer repair in south Louisiana. As it grew, it would eventually expand into owning and operating twenty-two trucks throughout the late 60's and 70's.   

In 1971, the company became an award-winning refrigeration unit dealership year after year and began offering repair and maintenance on refrigerated trucks and trailers. 

John Sumrall, son of the founder and owner of the present company, began as a refrigeration unit mechanic in 1978, learning the business from the ground up. With the expansion of the reefer business, John moved to Jackson, MS to open a new branch office for sales and service in 1986. 

In 1995, Charles Sumrall passed away and his son John moved back to New Orleans to continue his father's legacy and improve upon what he had built. The refrigeration portion of the family business had grown up to 38 employees, five mobile 24-hour service trucks, with locations in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Gulfport, and Jackson. 

The trailer refrigeration company in New Orleans was sold in the late 2000's, and a new facility was built in Hammond, Louisiana focusing on trailer and truck collision repair. 

In 2009, Trailer Sales of Louisiana LLC completed construction of a new 18,000 square foot operations center on three acres of frontage on Interstate 12 in Hammond, Louisiana. Seven years later, Trailer Sales opened its second location on Jefferson Highway in New Orleans. After the demand for services outgrew the two bay location in Jefferson, an eight bay service shop was opened in Kenner, Louisiana in 2020. 

Three years later, the company expanded outside of Louisiana and opened its third location in Gulfport, Mississippi. 

Sumrall’s has always been a family business and as it moves forward, this tradition will continue.  With Cassie as Director of Finance, John Jr. as Director of Service, and youngest son, Lane, a recent MBA graduate, as Director of Business, the future for the company never looked better.