It's that time of year where several suppling manufacturers choose to announce and present members of their network with their dealer awards.

Service Dealer had our ceremony back in November (which you can relive here), but these opening weeks of the year are often when we hear of individual companies bestowing gongs on their dealer partners. In our news today, we have stories of Baroness, Polaris, Merlo and Avant Tecno all doing just that.

And I must say, as editor of the journal dedicated to the dealer network, I am always delighted to be able to run pieces such as these. I do think it's important for suppliers to recognise and celebrate the hard work that dealerships put in for their brands throughout the year. We don't all need our tummies tickled constantly, but to have top-quality, dedicated work acknowledged once in a while, is necessary.

As such, I think a doff of the cap is due to Lister Wilder who not only picked up three awards from Baroness, but are also mentioned as best newcomer by Avant. Nice one guys!

Similar to our Dealer Of The Year Awards, aside from the fun night out in a posh frock, winning a prize such as this can be genuinely beneficial to a small business in a number of ways. As we've discussed previously, recognition can be a valuable opportunity to enhance credibility, build stronger supplier relationships, and stand out in a competitive market. Wins and nominations can also of course serve as a powerful marketing tool, motivate staff, and drive continuous improvement.

It feels important that dealers are well aware of what is required of them to be in the mix for industry awards such as those we feature today. If you haven’t yet pursued winning one, consider engaging with your suppliers to make sure you fully understand their criteria and can position your dealership for recognition. Equally, when the information is released later this year for our Service Dealer awards, do make sure you read all the guidance to get your dealership and your colleagues in the running this time around.

As we've said before, you know how hard you work year-round, so why not shout about it?

Busy workshops

Talking of hard work, an area of many dealerships that should win all the trophies will be your workshops. As we tend to at this time of the year, we are hearing anecdotally that many dealerships' service departments are absolutely rammed right now.

So today, we'd like to find out from as many of our dealer readers as possible if this a description that you recognise for your business? We're running a short survey on winter servicing that we'd really appreciate your input on, to find out if this is indeed the case nationwide.

We tend to run a questionnaire along these lines at this time of year, each season. Twelve months ago when we asked you how things were in your workshop, 'busy' was the key word we heard. However, for many who responded this was tinged with frustration at not being able to staff their service departments as comprehensively as they would like. Recruiting, and indeed retaining, quality personnel was clearly having an impact.

Some typical responses we received from dealers in 2024 included:

• "Staffing as ever remains a challenge with the industry needing to encourage more youngsters to enter the industry."
• "Staffing is dire. Finding anyone, not just experienced staff, is proving to be our main drawback."
• "We are extremely busy with 12 week lead times, ongoing delays in obtaining some parts, and ongoing issues recruiting more staff."

Do comments such as these still ring true for your dealership at the start of 2025? Have matters improved? Hopefully they haven't become any worse?! Or are we pretty much as we were?

Please do let us know today. All your answers and comments are in the strictest confidence. We'll reveal the findings and a selection of your opinions which we'd love for you to share, in the next issue of Service Dealer magazine.

Thanks in advance for your help.

TAKE THE SURVEY.

Polaris recently held a meeting for their dealers from across the UK to celebrate their successes of 2024 within a fiercely competitive market.

The Congleton team with their award

At this celebration the National 2024 Polaris Top Sales Performance Award was presented to Congleton Garden Machinery Ltd for their outstanding sales of UTV, quad bike and youth ATVs.

The dealership's director, Andrew Meek said, "This achievement was a direct result of the hard work, dedication and collaboration of each team member. Their passion and total commitment has been instrumental in gaining this major accolade."
 
Andrew continued, "We would also like to express our sincere gratitude to our greatly valued customers. Their ongoing support and trust are the cornerstone of our success.

"The Congleton Garden Machinery team are proud of what we have accomplished in 2024 and look forward to supporting our customers during our continued growth and future success, through 2025 and beyond."

The AEA recently reported that the number of agricultural tractors registered in the UK in 2024 reached 10,241, 13% fewer than the year before. Now, the Association has looked at how the situation varied between regions of the UK and power bands.

According to the AEA's figures most parts of the UK saw substantially fewer registrations in 2024 than in 2023. The exceptions were Northern Ireland, which recorded a small year-on-year increase, and Scotland and North East England, where registrations were only down 3-4%.

Agricultural economist at the Association, Stephen Howarth, explained this regional anomaly, saying, "All these are areas dominated by grazing livestock farms, which had a better year than their arable and dairy counterparts in other parts of the country. The biggest falls were in the South West and the Home Counties, both of which saw registrations dropping by about a quarter, compared with 2023. That meant East Anglia overtook the South West as the leading region for tractor registrations during the year."

In terms of power, the AEA says the downward trend in registrations was apparent across most of the power range, with the only exception being for the biggest machines, with power over 240hp. The number of such tractors registered during the year was 14% higher than in 2023. Across the rest of the power range, registrations were down by 17% year on year, with fairly similar rates of decline across the board.

Stephen Howarth noted, "With growth in registrations limited to the top end of the power range, the average power of tractors recorded in 2024 increased again, to 179.7hp. That compares with 173.8hp in 2023 and just 168.4hp in 2022. It also means that, while the number of tractors registered in 2024 was slightly lower than in 2020, during the previous downturn, the total power of machines logged during the year was 4% higher, at 1.84 million hp. That is still 10% less than in 2023, though."

North-East-based agricultural machinery specialists, Ancroft Tractors Ltd, recently marked a significant milestone - 30 years as a Merlo dealer. 

Shaun Groom presenting Merlo’s 30 years, long service award to Tom Brown

The achievement was celebrated with a long service award presented to managing director, Tom Brown, at the recent LAMMA Show.

Founded in 1979, Ancroft Tractors is a family-run business with a proud tradition of serving the agricultural community. With head office in Berwick-upon-Tweed, along with a depot selling and servicing Merlo’s in Kelso, the dealership ensures coverage across Northumberland, the Scottish Borders, and Mid/East Lothian. 

Reflecting on the partnership, Shaun Groom, general manager of Merlo UK, said: “Ancroft Tractors were one of the first dealers in the UK to sell Merlo machines to the agricultural industry. Merlo owes Ancroft Tractors a debt of gratitude for their loyalty and support, and we are proud to count them as a valued Merlo dealer.”

Tom Brown, managing director at Ancroft Tractors added, “As a friendly, family-owned business, backed by the best parts, service and sales teams we have embraced new products and technologies and introduced them to our customers.  It has been a privilege to work with Merlo for the past 30 years and we look forward to continuing this strong partnership in the future.”

The 2025 Avant Tecno Dealer Awards recently brought together the top-performing dealers and sales teams from across the UK to celebrate their outstanding achievements. 

Hosted at the All Saints Hotel in Bury St Edmunds, the manufacturer said the event highlighted the pivotal role that dealers play in their continued growth and success.

The Awards followed a day where dealers were given an exclusive tour of the company's brand-new headquarters in Bury St Edmunds. Designed to enhance operations, the 32,200 sq ft facility boasts modern offices, a spacious showroom, dedicated training spaces, an advanced warehouse, and a cutting-edge technical workshop. 

The evening Awards ceremony was a celebration of the hard work, dedication, and achievements of Avant’s dealers over the past year. This year’s winners showcased success across various categories:

• Dealer of the Year: Essener Equipment
• Recognition Award: Coppards
• Most Machines Sold: Essener Equipment
• Sales Competition Winner: Chris Slane, Essener Equipment
• Best Newcomer Award: Lister Wilder
• Marketing Award: Global
• After Sales Support: Avant Southeast Ltd
• Leguan Dealer of the Year: Coppards
• Best Newcomer of the Year Award: DM Forklifts
• Leguan Sales Person of the Year: Francisco Wingrove

Essener Equipment stood out as a top performer, earning both Dealer of the Year and Most Machines Sold, while their managing director Chris Slane secured the Sales Competition Winner title.

Avant Tecno UK managing director Raimo Ala-Korpi emphasised the importance of Avant’s dealer network. “Our dealers are more than just partners,” he said. “Their expertise, dedication, and passion for our products are what enable us to grow and deliver exceptional value to our customers. These awards are a way of acknowledging their tremendous efforts.”

Hunt Forest Group, who provide John Deere agricultural, professional turf, and homeowner machinery in the South & South West of England, has announced the appointment of Andy Symes as branch manager of their Dorchester location.

Andy Symes

Andy will oversee all aspects of the Dorchester branch’s operations, including sales, aftermarket support, customer service, and team management.

With a diverse background in the agricultural industry, Hunts say Andy brings a wealth of experience to the role. He has held positions at both machinery manufacturers and dealerships throughout the South West, demonstrating a strong understanding of the industry’s needs. Furthermore, his hands-on experience with livestock, including working and managing pig units, provides valuable insight into the challenges and requirements of agricultural customers.

“We are thrilled to welcome Andy to the Hunt Forest Group team,” said Tim Hunt, managing director.

“His extensive industry knowledge and proven leadership skills will be invaluable as we continue to grow our presence from the Dorchester branch and provide exceptional service to our customers.”

Andy added, “I am looking forward to meeting our customers and building upon relationships both old and new."

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