When we're out and about visiting dealerships - as we were on our jaunt south last week - it's always so encouraging and such an eye-opener to meet entrepreneurial business people, finding their own ways of thriving in their local communities.

I don't need to explain to our dealer readers how being independent affords owners the luxury of being able to choose exactly what the right way is to run their own companies - free from interference.

Obviously dealers will be stocking kit manufactured, in many cases, by huge multi-national corporations - who will of course have their own set of on-high, corporate rules attached to how their machines are dealt with. But as many dealers have pointed out to me over the years, "it's my name above the door"!

And that phrase will always hold true. On a local level it is indeed the dealer's name that the customer is familiar with and, more importantly, has a contract with - not perhaps the machinery maker whose identity, let's be honest, could be vaguely obscure to members of the general public.

At the coal face, it's the dealer who is in the firing line, and therefore it's only right that they dictate how their business is run. When we travel around it's so fascinating to me to see how companies can operate in such wildly different ways from each other - especially considering that they are offering remarkably similar products and services.

Just taking last week as an example, and thinking about robotic mowers, we spoke to dealers not too far apart from each other geographically who had diametrically opposed thoughts on the subject. Either they were all aboard and committing resources and themselves to the technology, or they had decided it wasn't right for their customers and weren't getting involved.

Crucially, both were right. Both were pursuing a course of action they had deemed correct for their own, independent business. And that's what the industry should be celebrating about the sector. There's the freedom and the flexibility within the market, allowing dealers to steer their own ship into territories that suit.

Shared problems

Having said all that, there is without a doubt, commonality across dealerships. There will be commonality within sales techniques, with how workshops are run, and in methods employed to market the business.

There will also be, unfortunately, commonality in headaches faced and problems that must be overcome. And it's your thoughts on a perennial hurdle that we'd appreciate your thoughts on today please, in the short survey we're running.

I don't think you would find any outdoor power equipment dealer who would say that recruiting staff for the business is plain sailing (although to be fair, few business owners in any sector likely would). 

Whenever we speak with dealers it's a subject that inevitably raises its head - mostly in grim resignation of the arduous nature of the task. Just last week for example, Andy Stubbings of Stubbings Bros on the Isle of Wight said to us "What’s tricky is finding that correct quality of person. You need to identify someone who ideally has an interest in mechanics outside of the work environment too." Which is of course, the needle in the haystack.

Looking back to when we asked for your opinions on this subject a year ago, we heard comments such as:

• "Our recent experience is awful. There are no suitable candidates and if we are lucky to find one, wage expectations are too high."
• "If we could somehow get the secondary education systems to promote, or even recognise, our industry it would help."
• "Very difficult to find the level of experience required and when successful i't's difficult to compete with the level of pay in other industries."

It'll be interesting to hear if the feelings of our dealer readers have changed much in the past year. Has the experience of recruiting shifted for your dealership?

Has the situation improved, stayed the same or even become worse? Please do let us know today.

We will print the results and a selection of your comments in the next issue of Service Dealer magazine. Thanks in advance for your help.

TAKE THE SURVEY.

Each year Reesink UK highlights its dealers who go above and beyond in providing exceptional standards of customer service, goals and considerations with its Aftermarket Dealer Awards. 

Overall Dealer of the Year for Excellence in Customer Support went to Reesink Turfcare South East 

The awards recognise an overall Dealer of the Year for Excellence in Customer Service, alongside outstanding performance in three key areas: Service, Parts and Skills. For the first time this year, Reesink also recognised its dealers that showed the greatest improvement across all key areas in a brand new award.

Dealers are scored across all three key categories in keeping with Reesink’s Service Level Agreement. The dealer that achieves the highest combined score across categories is awarded the overall Dealer of the Year for Excellence in Customer Support. This year that award went to Reesink Turfcare South East who also won the gold award for Excellence in Skills. 

Tom Clark, branch manager of Reesink South East said, “Receiving these awards is a proud achievement and recognises our staff members doing a good job. It shows customers we’re a trusted brand as an award winner in what we do to be recognised as one of the best in the field.”

The runners up in these respective categories were Lloyd Limited and Oliver Landpower, who both took home silver awards. 

When it came to Excellence in Parts, Revill Mowers took the gold award, with Gammies Groundcare taking silver. Stan Grewar, parts manager at Gammies Groundcare, says: “We’ve got a young team and this award reflects their hard work. I’m very proud of them, I know that the company and the parts department are in safe hands with them.” 

Excellence in Service saw Cheshire Turf Machinery win gold while Redtech Machinery took silver. 

Mark Woodward, service director at Cheshire Turf Machinery said: “We are continually investing in our customer service and the excellence in service award is our eighth award since 2017. All of our staff have been brilliant in maintaining and improving standards since the Reesink service level agreement was introduced.  

“I would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate one of our service technicians, Chris Hester. He’s our first technician to successfully complete the prestigious Toro Master Tech course.”

The new award for the dealership that showed the biggest step up across all sections of its KPI scoring: service, parts and skills went to Devon Garden Machinery. Steve Dommet from the company said: “This award recognises the efforts our after sales team has put into raising standards and improving the service we provide our commercial customers. As this is a new award it was a pleasant surprise when we found out we’d won.”

Lee Rowbotham, service and training manager at Reesink UK, added, “The relationship between distributor and dealer is vital to the success of both businesses. In many cases Reesink’s dealers have that all-important customer facing contact. We appreciate how vital that role is and feel strongly about strengthening our relationship with our dealers wherever possible. That’s one of the reasons why the Aftermarket Dealer Awards came to fruition.”

Lee continued, “Reesink has always prided itself on delivering fantastic after sales service and the Aftermarket Dealer Awards recognise those dealers who do an exceptional job at upholding this customer service standard. We’d like to thank them all for their continued hard work and incredible work ethic, it’s a real pleasure working with them year in and year out.”

Service Dealer are delighted to announce that Ibcos will be returning to the Conference & Awards this year, as a Gold Sponsor.

A new venue has been announced for this year, with the Crowne Plaza at Stratford-Upon-Avon taking on hosting duties - with the date to mark up in your diaries being 30th November 2023.

Service Dealer owner Duncan Murray-Clarke  said, "It's great that Ibcos are returning to sponsor our event again this year. We thank them for their support for our day dedicated to the independent dealer network."

James Buchanan, sales director at Ibcos, said, “We’re excited to announce that we will be a Gold Sponsor at this years’ Service Dealer Conference & Awards.

"We thoroughly enjoy sponsoring this event as it’s a great opportunity to meet with industry experts and share best practices with our customers."

Further details about this year's Conference & Awards, including the theme of the event, will be announced soon.

Bombardier Recreational Products (BRP) is continuing to grow its Can-Am off-road dealer network in the UK with the appointment of Bedford-based MKM Agriculture. 

MKM md, Anthony Deacon

The manufacturer says this new addition is part of their ongoing expansion plans to increase its share of the utility market in UK.

A family-run business with over 30 years’ experience in the agriculture and ground care sectors, MKM Agriculture will be adding the Can-Am off-road line-up as part of the business’ ongoing strategy to continually strengthen its product offering through the provision of vehicles its customers are requesting. 

Mike Loach, BRP commercial manager UK & Ireland, said, “We’re delighted to be adding such a knowledgeable and experienced dealer to our growing network in the UK. We believe the company will hit the ground running and we look forward to supporting the business as it helps us expand our share of the market in the utility sector.”

Anthony Deacon, managing director, MKM Agriculture Ltd, said, “Adding the Can-Am off-road line-up aligns with our ethos of investing in quality products that will benefit our customer base. The combination of the Can-Am offering and our team’s knowledge and experience will enable us to become the ‘go to’ business in the area for anyone looking to purchase an ATV or SSV and we look forward to working with Mike to achieve this.”

The Corvus Off-Road Vehicles dealer network has grown again with UK distributor Boss ORV announcing both agricultural and groundcare machinery dealers as new additions to the team.

L-R: Boss ORV md Phil Everett with Redlynch group sales manager, Paul Cooke

Corvus coverage in Dorset will now be provided by Redlynch Agricultural Engineering Limited, the business founded from humble roots by Nicholas Heal in 1980. Building on a passion and success in buying and selling secondhand machinery, Redlynch has grown to span three counties in the southwest.

“At Redlynch, we’ve carefully chosen the franchises we represent,” said a spokesperson for the company, “and our mission is to provide customers with the right machine for them.”

ORV md Phil Everett welcomed Nick Heal, Paul Cooke and all the team at Redlynch, adding that it is a major step forward for the Corvus Terrain range of 4x4 utility vehicles to gain such highly regarded sales and service in the area. 

L-R: Solly Mansfield, Phil Everett, and Oliver Mansfield

“Corvus UTV presence in the groundcare sector is growing from strength to strength as well,” added Phil. “The Boss ORV team is joined by Baggleys Machinery and we welcome Solly Mansfield, Oliver Mansfield, Toby Mansfield and all the team in distributing the Corvus Off-Road Vehicles range in East Anglia.”

Based in the heart of Norfolk, the dealership has been providing a service to the Norfolk community for many years, regarding offering a service to maintain machinery as being just as important as sales. They operate a fully equipped workshop which includes staff who have gained their MST Master Service Technicians award.

Tallis Amos Group has announced a new co-operation with Mazzotti.

The dealership says this partnership will enable them to offer Mazzotti's range of self-propelled sprayers to customers across South Wales and the West Midlands. They say the range of self-propelled sprayers from 2,000 to 6,000 litre capacity, will "perfectly complement" their existing John Deere trailed and self-propelled sprayer line-up. 

"We are delighted to partner with Mazzotti to offer our customers the latest in self-propelled sprayer technology," said Simon Amos, sales director of Tallis Amos Group."

Farm machinery dealer group, Russells, has been appointed by Bauer to handle sales and back-up services for its slurry handling and crop irrigation equipment across a territory stretching from Yorkshire southwards to Northamptonshire.

Russells' sales manager, Jonny Newton

Russells will provide parts and service back-up for equipment already in use as well as supplying new Bauer machinery and will have trained staff to look after the new product lines.

Paul Russell, managing director, said: “We are delighted to be working with Bauer, a leading brand in irrigation and slurry equipment. It provides us with a great opportunity across the business to extend our product offering with a range of equipment renowned for quality and innovation.”

Adrian Tindall, Bauer UK & Ireland sales manager, said: “This change to our distribution follows the retirement of John Milner and Roy Wharrick of Rainmec, who did us proud, maintaining a sound reputation for product expertise and service.

“We’re delighted that Paul Russell and his team accepted our approach and look forward to working with them to support our users across the livestock, arable and commercial horticulture sectors.”

Overseeing the new venture at Russells is sales manager Jonny Newton: “A lot of our existing customers use Bauer equipment, so it was an easy decision to take on such a well-known and well-regarded range of slurry and irrigation equipment,” he says. “We’ve had very positive feedback on news of our appointment, and we’ll be doing our best to provide the same level of service that the previous dealer delivered.”

Yamaha say they have pledged to help improve farm safety by offering free ATV rider competency training from the European All-Terrain Vehicle Safety Institute (EASI) to anyone purchasing a new Yamaha ATV.

“We have always advocated training for ATV operators, so to help improve driver competency we offer these courses free of charge with a new ATV,” says Yamaha’s area sales manager, Carl Stuart.
 
According to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) 2022 report, "Agriculture has the worst rate of worker fatal injury (per 100,000) of the main industrial sectors: 21 times higher than the average five-year annual rate across all industries."
 
Machinery and vehicles accounted for almost half of fatalities (48%). To reduce risk, improve operator competence, and help safeguard workers, the HSE strongly advise that ATV operators complete a training course.
 
Amy Morris, EASI UK regional operations manager says, “ATVs, when used properly, can save time and money. Our training courses highlight general machine checks, upkeep, weight distribution and active riding, which is imperative when operating on uneven, rutted terrain which is so often found on farms."
 
Taking a basic course to learn riding skills and use the correct equipment can help prevent the risk of accidents. “With the ever-increasing popularity of ATV’s, many operators have little or no experience. ATVs handle very differently to cars and motorcycles, so it is vitally important that all users should learn how to safely operate an ATV by taking an operator course,” says Mrs Morris.
 
The training can be completed in one day and there are 38 centres throughout the UK to do so. EASI advises that all riders, including those with years of experience, make the most of this offer.

“Even experienced riders can find themselves in potentially hazardous situations that can, without the correct training and knowledge, result in serious accidents. We welcome this move by Yamaha and hope that its customers will take advantage of this offer,” adds Mrs Morris.

STIHL has launched its first range of petrol 4-stroke water pumps, specifically designed to meet the demanding needs of agricultural, construction and hire markets. 

WP 300

The new range consists of two models, the WP 300 and WP 600. The WP 600 boasts a robust cast iron impeller, a powerful 4.4 kW engine and 3” hose connections for the delivery of large volumes of water up to 63 m3/h, and comes complete with an integrated suction filter to protect the pump from dirt particles. 

With a similar design, its counterpart the WP 300 includes the same features as the WP 600 except for 2” hose connections and a lower 37 m3/h delivery capacity for smaller jobs.

The WP 300 and WP 600 can be fuelled by STIHL’s Moto4Plus, a high quality alkylate fuel specifically designed for small 4-stroke engines. Compared to forecourt fuel, Moto4Plus has a significantly longer shelf life, less harmful emissions and no tank drainage requirement when in storage. 

WP 600

Both pumps offer intuitive technology including low oil protection, meaning the engine switches off when the engine oil level falls below the safe operation threshold.  An anti-vibration system also helps to reduces mechanical stress. 

Designed with user comfort in mind, the WP 300 and WP 600 offer a sturdy frame for excellent stability and easy transportation, simple controls and toolless access to the air filter for easy maintenance. 

All STIHL tools, including both water pumps, are compatible with the STIHL Connected fleet management system. Installing a STIHL Smart Connector allows the runtime to be recorded and sent to the user’s smartphone via Bluetooth for accurate usage and maintenance records. 

For more information on STIHL’s new petrol water pumps, please visit www.stihl.co.uk.

Our 2020 Summer research showed that on average, each Garden Trader dealer will be sent 114 new customers (or people with a buying intention walking through your door) per year.  This works out at 83p for each new customer. A subscription rate designed to be all inclusive delivering unrivalled online results.  

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