08/10/2026
I would like to thank The Murfreesboro Pulse for the wonderful spotlight on our small business and the great write up. I hope you all enjoy reading a little about how we got here and what exactly it is we do at our shop. Thank you to all the customers who make it possible. You are the best!
Some business owners arrive where they are through meticulous career path planning and carefully mapping out their future. Others ride the wave and let things unfold.
Local small business owner Carrie Richards didn’t set out to be the owner/operator of an American manufacturing company specializing in flail mower blades from a young age, but the longtime resident calls her journey to ownership of a mower parts manufacturer “a God thing.”
Today, Richards runs Flail-Master, a Murfreesboro-based company with roots stretching back more than six decades. The company produces steel mower blades and replacement parts used everywhere, from Tennessee farms to military bases overseas, cranberry bogs, airports, vineyards and even ski resorts.
Flail-Master traces its history back to the 1960s, when founder Harold Mensior began manufacturing replacement flail mower blades in Michigan. The business later relocated to the Berry Hill area of Nashville before eventually moving its manufacturing operation to Murfreesboro, where its products—namely, flail mower replacement blades—are still produced today.
Flail mowers—heavy-duty machines used by farmers, highway departments, municipalities, landscapers and property managers—don’t rely on one large rotating blade as do standard mowers, but rather individual teeth mounted to a rotating drum.
“These mowers take anywhere from 40 to 216 blades,” Richards said.
Even if a replacement blade costs $5 to $10, outfitting an entire machine can represent a sizeable investment for the flail mower operator—but still far less than replacing the entire piece of equipment.
For years, Richards worked in the local service industry, tending bar and serving customers in Murfreesboro restaurants while raising her family as a single mother, but she has since found her role, her niche, and a passion for mower parts, carving out a fulfilling career in the manufacturing industry.
Murfreesboro Pulse: How did you acquire Flail-Master?
Carrie Richards: “I was working at Cheddar’s; I was actually desperate to get out of Cheddar’s. The manager at the car place next door, City Auto, he used to come in and eat with me. He told me, “Bring me a résumé and you can come sell cars. You need to get out from behind here. You need to make more money. You’ll have insurance.” I was going to be a car salesman.” . . .
More 👇🏻
https://boropulse.com/2026/08/blades-and-blessings-how-an-unexpected-phone-call-led-to-murfreesboro-woman-saving-a-60-year-old-manufacturing-company/
