METAIRIE, La. — Rental veteran Donald Charbonnet last month announced the formation of Charbonnet Consulting. Charbonnet, based in Metairie, La., told RER he plans to work with growing companies on operational issues to help make them more successful.

Charbonnet started in the rental industry working for his family's rental business, and led the growth of that company from seven to 17 locations. Charbonnet was part of the management team that grew Buckner Rental Service from seven to 27 locations before selling to Neff Rental. He assisted in Neff Rental's growth as vice president of acquisitions during the late '90s consolidation period. Charbonnet started Louisiana Rents, the Cat Rental Store, for the Caterpillar dealer in Louisiana, opening seven greenfield startup branches in two-and-a-half years. Most recently, he operated two John Deere Construction Equipment dealership stores.

After 35 years of operational experience in management and sales, Charbonnet has held the positions of president, chief operating officer, chief administrative officer, general manager, sales manager, vice president of acquisitions, and director of operations. He is well versed in management, recruiting, multi-location coordination, customer service, new product development, expansion and site selection, budget development, vendor negotiation, sales and marketing, business plan development and more. Charbonnet can also help with the acquisition or sale of rental companies as well as assist a company to plan strategically to position itself for eventual sale.

“I look forward to working with companies of all sizes who feel they need someone to make a complete assessment of their operation or focus on a particular area of concern,” Charbonnet said.

Charbonnet can be reached at charbconsulting@aol.com.