Gladiator Trailers: Neighboring County Business Built From Ground Up

Custom Trailer Business Focusing on Quality and Craftsmanship

Father and son duo Leonard Hill (L) and Tyler Hill, owners of Gladiator Trailers in Leitchfield.

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Darren Doyle, story:
"Built from the ground up" not only describes the humble beginnings of a local business from our neighbors just across the county line, but also in what they build, which are custom heavy duty trailers of all shapes and sizes. 

Gladiator Trailers, owned by Leonard Hill, a former factory engineer, and his son Tyler Hill, a welder by trade, is shaking up the trailer business in south central Kentucky and beyond by putting quality first. Quality parts, materials, and workmanship are the forefronts of what they do, with family and community pride.

Custom 20ft car hauler owned by Darren Doyle.

There is no shortage of trailer dealers in the region. Whatever size Edmonson County residents (or anyone else in the region) want or need is available within a 30 minute drive or less. Additionally, a quick scroll on Facebook Marketplace or other online sites will net you hundreds of other new and used trailers for sale, but for the Hills, they say Gladiator Trailers is providing what some other places leave out, which is absolute quality.

"We build these trailers every day just like we would want our own trailers built," Leonard said. "We pay the same amount of attention to the big structural stuff as we do the smallest detail. We don't want our name associated with anything cheap. Like the name Gladiator, our trailers are tough," he said.

Custom gooseneck.

Utility trailer.

Utility trailer.

Custom car hauler.

The business began somewhat out of frustration, according to Leonard. More than a decade ago, he became an independent salesman for a line of trailers from somewhere else, just to pick up some extra cash on the side. He sold them from his first location, known as HWY 737 Trailer Sales, located at well...you guessed it, Highway 737. 

He said the more trailers he sold, he saw that the overall quality of these products began to fade, at least according to his standards. 

"We started fixing these other trailers where they would break or need repairs," said Tyler Hill. "That's where we started talking about just building our own. If we did that, then we would set the quality standards." 

The one-bay garage on 737 began to get busier all the time, with both repairs and custom builds. With a small space, there were some learning curves, the duo said.

"I think it took us like two months or something to build our first trailer because we kept making changes, trying to make it better," said Tyler. 

Trailers are hand-pinstriped.

Dropdown side gate.

The boys now seem to have it down to a science. If you take a quick walk inside their new facility just on the south side of Leitchfield, located at 811 South Main, you'll see a whole team of guys working, sparks flying, with everyone focused on their goal...quality.

What you won't find is anything cheaply done.

"People see a trailer at another place for less than our price and they think it's the same thing, but it's not. With us, you're paying for better parts, better materials, and craftsmanship that we stand behind," Leonard said. 

So much so, they offer a lifetime warranty on their welding to the original owner. They even say if an original Gladiator Trailer breaks down on you, bring it in and they'll get it back on the road. 

Custom tilt hauler.

Add-ons like custom-built toolboxes, custom fenders, and more are available.

Framing is 18" on center instead of standard 24" centers.

The duo added a couple of guys in what they call was at first "a venture," but Leonard has since left a very comfortable job in the factory to help Gladiator make their mark in the trailer business. 

Tyler said, "When you quit the job, you're all in. You're not going back to that job, so it was serious then."

Despite adding on to their garage on 737, they were still hindered with space. They were also unloading literally tons of steel by hand, one piece at a time. Their process has now grown into an operation with eight full time workers and three high school students. While they are now unloading and moving material with tow motors and cranes, their hands are still dirty, which is just how they like it. 

A business flyer lying on the table read "Quality trailers. Honest work. That's the Gladiator way."

With an authentic feel, they wanted an authentic logo, so they reached out to famed comic artist and Grayson County resident Larry Elmore who created art for the Sony online game EverQuest. His list of work also includes illustrations for Dungeons & Dragons, Dragonlance, and his own comic strip series SnarfQuest. Elmore hand drew the Gladiator logo for the business.

With the help of their own sales rep, Gladiator is now selling trailers in nine different states. The Hills say their rep receives hundreds of messages at a time from those who want to know more about the quality of Gladiator.

They build everything from 10ft utility trailers all the way up to 35ft goosenecks, all custom built by hand in their shop in Leitchfield. They are also currently in process of building their own line of livestock trailers.

Additionally, they also offer repairs of all types of trailers, which includes coming to your site and getting you back on the road. Just a couple days ago, they were able to repair a boat trailer from someone who stopped in. High quality, USA-made parts from Dexter, the largest supplier of trailer parts in America, are also available for purchase for all your trailer needs.

​The Hills say community involvement is also important and they have two trailers going up for raffle at the upcoming Grayson County Fair. Proceeds of the raffle will go to provide workstations and equipment at their facility for high school students who want to gain real life trade experience. Both of the 10ft and 14ft utility trailers for raffle were built by high school students.

Leonard and Tyler are available by phone or text:
Leonard: 270-287-8244
Tyler: 270-589-3450
[email protected]

You can find them on Facebook here.

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