First up, hopefully you've already seen that Service Dealer is today launching 2021's Dealer Of The Year Awards.

Please do check out all the info and watch Duncan's introduction because we have some fantastic new categories this year which we're very excited about. They reflect and reward the remarkable work that dealerships across the UK have been performing throughout this turbulent 18 months.

The team organising the awards felt that the regular product-sector Dealer Of The Year awards could not be run in their normal format in 2021 due to the unprecedented trading conditions which all have endured. Instead they came up with a set of categories that are designed to honour the hard work of dealerships and their employees during this time - both within their businesses but also in their communities.

There will be an award that I'm sure each of our readers will be able to recognise an element of in their own business. You know the lengths that you and staff have been going to during these trying months, so please let us hear about what you've been up to! Your business and your people are deserving of that spotlight of recognition shone upon it that comes with the winning of a prestigious national award. So get involved!

Have a good read through all the details on the website as entry is different to previous years - plus have a good think about all the information you need to share in order to convey why your dealership is deserving - and then get blowing your own trumpet!

Service Dealer wants to hear from as many of our readers as possible. Dealerships large and small, from all corners of the country, are all in with an equal shout. We know the ingenuity, resourcefulness and determination of the network in normal year - but under these extenuating circumstances?! There must be many stories to be told, alongside people and business to be praised.  Start your entry journey here.

Catching up with our dealer panel

Speaking of resourceful and determined dealers, Service Dealer had the pleasure of chatting to some again this week in another of our regular video-link catch-ups.

As ever, a valuable experience for us as we get to hear first hand what the current situation is like on the front line. We thank those dealers and the representatives of trade associations, who joined us for their time and their insights.

Stock

Unsurprisingly there is still one subject that's dominating the working lives of dealers - the availability (or otherwise) of stock. 

One anecdote which stood out to me was a dealer who represented a large agricultural machinery business telling us they had 457 trailers all sold to customers, but no date for delivery for any of the goods. Also, a price rise had occurred on the product in the meantime, that would now have to be passed on to the buyers.

The causes of these hold-ups are myriad and, by now, well-discussed. We heard that on the whole customers are understanding of delays because they are being seen everywhere. Yes, you might get the odd one chewing your ear off - but we're not hearing horror stories of mass cancellations of orders. Punters realise it's not like they can go down the road and buy from elsewhere - every stockist is in the same boat.

What this week's discussion did highlight though - and it's been something that other dealers have mentioned to us separately - is a feeling that certain manufacturers are letting their network down on the communications front. Keeping dealers up to date with the latest info and dates is vital right now, but we heard that with certain suppliers, it's the dealers being forced to do the chasing. Some suppliers, we were told, were not getting in front of the messaging as perhaps they should.

There is of course, an acknowledgement that the suppliers themselves are receiving contradictory and unreliable information from further up their supply chain - dealers are well aware of this. It was the silence from some that didn't sit well. It was theorised that there is probably an element of 'keeping their heads down' from certain camps. It was speculated that so many dates have been given out this year that turned out to be false, there's a sense of embarrassment in saying anything.

It wasn't an across the board criticism though. The situation was summed up by one dealer who said that those suppliers who in normal times had been great at their comms, had kept up the good work. It was those who were always bad, had gotten even worse!

Is this something that rings true for the suppliers you deal with? Have your say in the comments below.

Meeting up

The conversation moved on to the industry beginning to meet up together again this autumn after the enforced hiatus. Not so much at national shows, or even at the many roadshows taking place this month - the talk was more around the manufacturer-organised training courses currently available.

We heard just how important these are to dealerships, with several we spoke to saying they had staff out on educational courses currently. Webinars have played their part during all of this, we were told, but there was clearly a desire to see staff members safely back in rooms, learning in-person. It was felt that so much more is gained when in a face-to-face instructional environment.

We had heard prior to our chat this week, some concern that perhaps there weren't enough options for real-life courses dealers could send their people on, especially in the 'homeowner' products sector. We didn't really pick up on this with those we spoke to this week - but please if you feel differently, let us know in the comments below.

What is quite obvious, is that there is genuine desire to get members of staff back training with the manufacturer's product experts. One dealer told us they had members of staff who joined them just as all this kicked off, who hadn't yet been able to attend their first in-person course. Hopefully this will be changing this autumn.

New players entering the market

To finish on something of a positive note, the news that new players such as Segway are choosing to the enter the groundcare sector, was broadly seen as a positive move. It's much better to see new companies enter your industry rather than leave it, was how one dealer put it.

With new, untried products though, we heard that dealers tend to be careful who they recommend and sell the gear too - due to the unknown reliability factor. You don't want to be staking your reputation with a professional client on something you can't guarantee.

That said, it was definitely felt that new, well-known names entering the industry, was good for dealers and customers as long as the quality was there.

It was said that it's competition that keeps a market strong, not stagnation.