Shaping the Future of Ag Retail: A Conversation with ARA Chairperson Amy Asmus
December 4, 2025 When Amy Asmus, owner of Asmus Farm Supply in Rake, IA, joined a recent episode of CropLife Retail Week, her insights quickly demonstrated why she has been such an influential voice during her tenure as Chairperson of the Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA). With the ARA annual meeting approaching, Asmus reflected on a year marked by financial stewardship, shifting industry dynamics, and a fast-approaching era of technological change that she believes will reshape ag retail for years to come.
Reinvesting in Members, Not Raising Dues
One of Asmus’ most significant accomplishments during her tenure involved a thoughtful restructuring of ARA’s emergency fund. Originally intended as a safeguard for unexpected needs, the fund had grown substantially over time due to prudent investment. As its balance rose, so did proposals to raise member dues in order to expand programming.
Raising dues, Asmus felt, was the wrong solution.
“I am death against raising the dues for ARA because I think they’re already fairly high,” she said. “If we raised them, we’d have even more of a problem getting people as members than if we left them where they’re at.”
Instead, she spearheaded a reassessment of how the emergency fund should function. The result was a new policy that retains a responsible reserve while allowing excess funds to be reinvested directly into member programs, grants, and benefits.
“We set up a policy to actually use the excess funds for membership benefit or any programs that we felt would benefit our members,” Asmus explained. “It’s a great use of our members’ money and a responsible way to still have an emergency fund, yet let the proceeds help ARA.”
The new approach has already fueled several initiatives designed to strengthen engagement and deliver measurable value to retailers.
The Ongoing Challenge of Membership
Even with new investments in member value, Asmus acknowledges that membership growth remains one of ARA’s biggest hurdles.
“As administrations change, there’s this idea that we need ARA — and then maybe we don’t need ARA,” she said. “When companies are cutting costs, sometimes ARA gets the short end of the stick because they assume the advocacy work we do will benefit them whether they’re a member or not.”
The challenge, she noted, is conveying the full depth of what ARA offers — especially the value of relationships and professional development, which can’t be quantified on a balance sheet.
“My career has been shaped by those people who crossed my path through ARA,” Asmus said. “The networking, the mentors, the colleagues — they’ve made me a much better person in the industry. That’s priceless, and I can’t articulate that enough.”
Her message to nonmembers is direct: “Join ARA. We’re a great group of people, and the value of those relationships is something you can’t put a number on.”
An Industry on the Verge of Transformation
Looking ahead to 2026 and beyond, Asmus sees an industry entering one of its most transformative periods—one driven by technology, shifting expectations, and changing agronomic tools.
“Ag retail’s not going to look like what it looks like today in five to eight years,” she said. “We have to evaluate the technology that’s coming out — automation, artificial intelligence, new decision-support tools — and figure out how to help our growers incorporate them.”
Biological products also represent a growing but challenging frontier.
“Biologicals have been around forever, but now it seems like they’re the new frontier,” she said. “There’s a lack of information needed to place them in the right situations for success. The retailer and manufacturer who embrace education and transparency will be the ones who win.”
Retailers, she believes, will soon reach a fork in the road: evolve or risk irrelevance.
“You can do retail like we’ve always done it,” she said, “but I doubt you’ll be doing retail in a few years if that’s your approach. Or you can embrace the new frontier, educate yourself and your growers, and really shape the retail of the future.”
A Chairperson’s Final Message
As her time as ARA chair draws to a close, Asmus offers straightforward advice to the leaders who will follow her.
“Do what you think is right,” she said. “You were raised to that position because people admire you and trust you. I truly believe you always have the right chair at the right time.”
With a clear vision for innovation, advocacy, and member value, Amy Asmus leaves her role confident that the industry is entering an era rich with opportunity — so long as retailers are ready to seize it.
“We have more options than ever before to redefine retail,” she said. “If we embrace them, the future is truly exciting.”
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