Maxon hires liftgate innovator

Maxon Lift Corp recently hired Hakan Peterson as vice president of strategic growth.

In this new role, Peterson will be responsible for identifying new revenue streams, both in and out of the liftgate industry, the company said.

“We could not be happier to have Hakan on board with the Maxon family,” said Brent Stratton, Maxon co-president. “Hakan started Interlift in the early 1990s and successfully grew the company into a major player in the North American liftgate market. Outside of the Maxon team, we can think of no one in the industry that has the entrepreneurial drive and passion of Hakan.”

Peterson’s career began in Europe at Zepro tailifts. In 1985, he relocated to the US, working for Zepro’s subsidiary prior to their acquisition of Waltco a year later. In 1993, he started Interlift, a US-based sales and distribution organization for Germany-based MBB Liftsystems. His idea was to introduce European liftgate technology to the US market. In 2007, MBB (including its US subsidiary) was acquired by the Palfinger Group. At that time, under Peterson’s leadership, Palfinger/MBB-Interlift grew to be the third-largest truck and trailer liftgate supplier in the North American market.

“For over 30 years I competed with Maxon,” Peterson said. “They were always a tough competitor. I am excited to now be part of the Maxon family and part of the ongoing Maxon success story at the No 1 liftgate manufacturer in North America.”

Anton Griessner, vice president of marketing at Maxon, said he’s excited to add a long-time friend to the team.

“Hakan and I have maintained a mutual friendship partially due to our shared passion for motorcycles and the liftgate industry,” Griessner said. “I am looking forward to giving him all the Maxon support to make him successful in this newest step in his career.

“Now, finally we can actually plan a motorcycle ride together.”