Portsmouth Trailer - Forty Years of Excellence, Quality and Value

For over 40 years, Portsmouth Trailer Supply has proudly served the Hampton Roads boating and water sports community. President and CEO, Earlene Coyner, and her seasoned, attentive staff of professionals provide each customer with sound advice, top-quality parts, and an unusually high-end level of service. Most importantly, the company’s commitment to customer satisfaction continues long after the sale or repair has been completed.

When it comes to repairs, Portsmouth Trailer Supply can handle everything trailer related: they stock a full line of foreign and domestic goosenecks, running gear, wheels and tires, tow bars, hitches, brakes, rollers, winches, and much more. Master welders are on-site, creating detailed, custom work for specialty applications. At their spacious facility, three bays are geared up to tackle a variety of trailer upkeep and maintenance tasks. A new fourth bay is dedicated to accommodating larger jobs, such as crafting tow bars and hitches for motor coaches. Want to tow that Hummer? No problem!

For many years, the company’s original site was located on Portsmouth Boulevard, in Portsmouth, where Earlene worked side-by-side with her late-husband Ted in the family business. Their reputation for excellence became so firmly established that when Earlene and crew moved into larger digs on South Military Highway in Chesapeake, they decided to retain the name, Portsmouth Trailer Supply.

The new location is a one-stop shopping and maintenance haven for boaters, sailors and jet ski enthusiasts of all stripes. Conveniently located right next to Bay Propeller, and a brand new marine store, a client can drop off a boat for a prop tune-up, have the boat trailer inspected, then stock up on life vests, flares, line and other accessories…all in one fuel-saving trip. Inventory also includes cargo management equipment: straps, baskets, and hitch fittings.

When Earlene Coyner took the helm as CEO, Portsmouth Trailer Supply became one of the few woman-owned businesses in the industry, a fact of which she is proud. She is also pleased with her diverse staff, who can talk hubs, axles, brakes and fenders with the best of them. When new employees show promise, they are carefully mentored so that they can grow along with the company. Continuity is key, and many of Earlene’s associates have been with the company for 20-plus years, quite an accomplishment in an environment where many employers are struggling to hire and retain qualified personnel. Portsmouth Trailer Supply has a deep bench.

A related arm of the company, TrailerMate, Inc., makes wholesale parts and accessories available to dealers everywhere. They routinely ship parts up and down the East Coast, and they’ve also sent emergency components to clients in Europe. In addition, parts are delivered by truck on a regular basis to customers throughout the Tidewater, Richmond, Eastern Shore, and Outer Banks areas.

As the company has grown and prospered, Earlene and staff unstintingly share their resources with a carefully selected group of charities: Seaton House, St. Jude Children’s Hospital, and local food banks. Earlene feels she’s blessed with a great staff, a growing business, and a job she adores. Giving back to her community is an integral part of her business philosophy.

Earlene explains: “Giving back to the community is also directly related to showing our appreciation to our family of customers. We want them all to have the best experience they can possibly have, assured that we are focused on the road-handling ability and safety of all of our custom work and repairs. Since much of our business comes from referrals, we know we’re doing something right. We’ve found our niche, and thus don’t compete with businesses that sell the trailers themselves…but we provide all of the parts and services related to keeping them in prime condition, and over the years, we have cultivated relationships with dealers and individuals who regularly turn to us for our expertise. It’s what we do well, and we absolutely love doing it.”