Richard Smith, who worked for a number of leading farm and groundscare companies, has died at the age of 70. He passed away in St Michael’s Hospice, Hereford last Sunday (30 August 2015) surrounded by his wife Liz and two children Rosie and Douglas.

A service to celebrate Richard’s life will be held at the parish church, Llanwarne, near Hereford on Wednesday 9 September

Richard started in the industry in 1968, working on warranty claims for Wiltshire farm machinery manufacturer Archie Kidd. In 1972, he moved to Ransomes in the plough division but after a year joined Knight Farm Machinery until 1975, when he moved to steel components manufacturer, Kitchins, in Chesterfield.

Richard then joined farm machinery manufacturer Bamletts, but a chance meeting with Jim Carroll with whom he previously worked with at Archie Kidd resulted in him joining Jim’s new venture Polymark in Sussex. The company made plastic tanks for agriculture but were looking to diversify, and Jim knew of Richard’s skills in developing ideas and machines.  The result was the Beaver range of turf machinery which Richard ran from 1978 until 1990.  The company was subsequently bought by Greg Hutchins’ Tomkin conglomerate to amalgamate with the recently acquired Hayter company.

Richard found the transition to Hayter a difficult period and in 1991 jumped at the chance to set up a UK subsidiary for the US mower maker Snapper, which he based at Hamble in Hampshire where he was joined by Duncan Martin (now md of GGP UK) who had moved over from Hayter.

When Snapper decided to move its distribution arrangements into the hands of Saxon Industries, Richard joined the Hungerford company for a short while, before accepting an offer to become managing director of Wolf Garden UK in 1996, relocating from his Sussex home to Herefordshire.  He stayed with Wolf until the company reorganised in 2004, when he left to set up his own consultancy, Lyston Business Services, which he ran until his retirement in 2007.

Commenting Duncan Martin says “Richard was simply one of the good guys and a true gentleman. Always diplomatic but determined and single minded”  

Richard (right) pictured with Tony Whitburn, Nairn Brown and Peter Jefferis at a karting day at Sandown Park