This feeling of waking up on a Friday morning after another tremendously significant vote has become all too familiar in recent years.

How will the events of last night affect our industry? Whenever we ask questions along those lines of our readers, we usually receive an overwhelming 'not much' in response! 

Weather is of course our number one factor of influence regarding a good or bad year. Although I have heard from dealers in the past who tell me the very fact of holding an election slows up trade in their store - so at least that's out of the way now!

A typical response to a recent survey we ran, asking our readers how they felt prospects were for their business next year, was, "After over 40 years in the trade, I have seen it all before and survived, and while the last two years have been difficult, grass still grows and people need machines and repairs." Which frankly, is a truism which it's almost impossible to argue against.

This particular commentator went on to express the opinion, I'm guessing held by many, that the sooner we can get back to just worrying about the weather, the better.

And I suppose what the underlying problem here has been, is the uncertainty which has pervaded the thinking of both business owners and customers alike in recent times.

Whether in reality, this result which Boris and his supporters were looking for has actually resolved, or put us on the path to resolving uncertainty - well, that's something which each of our own individual politics will have us arguing over. 

Perhaps though, if the majority of the public have at least had their perceptions changed as a result of the election - if it helps to create a shift in mass attitudes - well, maybe that's a positive worth clinging on to?

A recent article in The Guardian, highlighted several small business owners concerns regarding the current state of the economy. An interesting read, a quote from a house builder stood out for me, as the sort of thoughts I've seen articulated by our readers. He said, "Brexit uncertainty has proved to be a nightmare. And elections are not much better. They also make people feel anxious about the future."

Similar to this quoted house builder, specialist dealers don't need their customers feeling anxious about the future. They want people investing in new machinery and technologies, as well as seeing value in keeping their older kit in good working order. Anxiety about the future doesn't help in the slightest.

At this early stage it would be unwise for supporters of any political colour to make a grand statement along the lines of uncertainty in the market is or isn't over. It's too early for that. But if matters now do start to move towards an increased clarity - and of course if the sun shines and the rain falls - perhaps we can move into the new decade with some quiet optimism.

Because, as one of our readers said recently in response to our survey, "If you are not optimistic, you will not succeed in attracting more customers."

Last month saw a significant milestone reached for Garden Trader, the website that puts specialist dealers in front of customers at the point of making a purchase decision.

Founder of the site, Duncan Murray-Clarke, who also owns Service Dealer, says that November saw Garden Trader clock up one million dealer search impressions.

Garden Trader

When asked what this meant, Duncan said, "This is the amount of times subscribed dealers appear in any of the searches on the site. So this could be through a search for the closest five dealers, or by town or county etc."

Duncan continued by explaining what this exactly means for dealers who are signed up to the site. "It means that the site is working and attracting those people researching a sale online," he said. "It is pushing the concept of paying to get a proper service through our dealer network and then driving the potential customers to their nearest specialists by location.

"Every dealer can login and see for themselves just how effective the site has been for their business this year - and I urge subscribed dealers to do just that. I am also delighted to say that we are keeping the subscription rate the same in 2020 - 26p a day."

The site is now three years old and its owners have once again stated that all revenues will be used to keep promoting the site to customers in 2020.

Following the success of the launch period it has also been announced that the site is planning to launch in the USA next year, under the name mymowerspecialist.com.

Dealers can register for Garden Trader here.

This year, Henton & Chattell and Cobra have been working closely with cancer charity ‘Breast Cancer Now’ to produce a limited edition pink Cobra GTRM38P lawnmower.

In July, the lawnmower was launched and thanks to the incredible support from their dealers the company say they have been able to donate £5,000 to the charity.

Peter Chaloner, managing director of Henton & Chattell said, “Together with the support of our dealers, we have raised a huge amount for this very worthy charity through sales of our Breast Cancer Now Cobra lawnmower. Here at Henton & Chattell we have colleagues, family and friends who have been affected by this life changing illness, so we decided that it would be a great idea to raise money for such a worthwhile cause”.

With the initial order of 200 pink lawnmowers selling out and the overwhelming success of the campaign this year, Henton & Chattell and Cobra say they are excited to be continuing their support of Breast Cancer Now into 2020.

Breast Cancer Now is determined to stop people dying from Breast Cancer. They believe that if we all act now, by 2050, everyone who develops breast cancer will live.

BAGMA Connect recently held its second meeting of the year at the Bury Transport Museum near Manchester.

Members and guests from the surrounding areas were invited to a business morning, lunch and an opportunity to tour the museum and meet with other members. There were 34 delegates representing 24 companies including speakers and guests in attendance on the day.

BAGMA Director, Keith Christian, addressing the meeting

The morning agenda began with a welcome from the Connect Chairman, Andrew Walker of B&B Tractors, followed by a presentation from BAGMA Director, Keith Christian on the activities and services of provided by BAGMA.

Peter Arrand, BAGMA President, from Ripon Farm Services, provided a presentation on the current situation of apprentice training, proposed T Level Qualifications and the need for recruitment and retention in the Landbased engineering sector. This was followed by an update, including facts and figures, on current Health and Safety Prosecutions by Dean Lowe of Safety Aide, which provided a wake-up call on how prosecutions and fines are changing in this area.

John Halliday, Bira’s marketing director provided an insight into digital marketing and analysing information through Google Analytics and how to optimise this area of marketing. Paul Bennet from Towergate, BAGMA’s insurance partner, presented on the BAGMA Insurance offering and the issues with insurance surrounding cybercrime and what companies can do to protect themselves with insurance.

After lunch delegates were invited to stay and chat and tour the museum.

BAGMA say they would like to thank all those that attended for taking part and taking the time to attend. The next Connect meeting will be advised in the New Year.

Some of the most innovative machinery and equipment likely to bring significant benefits to farming and contracting business has been recognised in the LAMMA Innovation Awards.

Organisers say entries ranged from simple but brilliant to ultra hi-tec, illustrating the imagination and flair that drives the advancement of science and technology across the agricultural manufacturing sector.

The Weed Ripper from Westermann has won Gold in the Driven Innovation category

The entries were judged on a range of criteria including design innovation, practical impact, the sustainability of the product and its impact on the environment.

Visitors to LAMMA will be able to see the medal winners and talk to the companies that put them forward, due to the return of the Innovation Trail, which was introduced last year.

The judging panel was made up of experts from across the agricultural manufacturing and education sectors, led by chairman Chris Rothery.

“We were very pleased by the number of entries, one of the highest we have received, and the variety of those entries,” Chris said. “I was particularly delighted with the quality in the Future section which had 22 participants in only the second year of this category.

“I am looking forward to following the Innovation Trail at the NEC on the 7th January, visiting many stands to see the entries that we judged in November.”

The annual awards, which are supported by the Institution of Agricultural Engineers (IAgrE), are open to any company exhibiting a new product at LAMMA. Entrants compete for one gold and up to three silver medals in each of six categories.

In addition, the LAMMA Founders trophy will be awarded to the overall champion at 2pm on the first day of LAMMA in the Farming 4.0 zone.

IAgrE has supported the LAMMA Innovation Awards for many years through judging, and it also sponsors the Ivel award for the best product among the medal winners for environmental innovation.

Jane Rickson, president of IAgrE, said: “In recognition of our tractor heritage, the Ivel award was created in memory of Dan Albone, the designer of the first successful light farm tractor.

“The institution is motivated and driven by innovation. We recognise agricultural engineering can reduce the environmental footprint of farming through reducing carbon emissions and better fuel efficiency. By supporting the Innovation Awards, IAgrE can reward practical, environmentally efficient and sustainable agricultural engineering.”

LAMMA Innovation Awards 2020 – gold and silver medals

Future Innovation

• Gold: Skippy Scout – Drone Ag
• Silver: I-Spray – Kuhn
• Silver: Permos Pellet Harvester – Krone UK

Arable Innovation

• Gold: RT 500 and trailed harrow – Razorback
• Silver: TWINPACT double plunger baler – Kuhn
• Silver: H2Flo Water Conservation Agent – ICL
• Silver: Vredo Crop Drill System – JC Machinery

Livestock Innovation

• Gold: Triple X Fencing System – McVeigh Parker
• Silver: Intellimix – Kuhn

Online Innovation

• Gold: Emily Feed System
• Silver: Energy Guard – HIT Energy Services

Diversification Innovation

• Gold: Mass Store Rainwater Harvesting – JRH Water Management Ltd
• Silver: Heated Jacket – TTI Milkwaukee Tools

Driven Innovation

• Gold: Weed Ripper – Westermann

Ivel Award

• Vredo Crop Drill System – JC Machinery

LAMMA ’20 will take place at the NEC on Tuesday 7th and Wednesday 8th January 2020. Parking and entry to the event are free.

Bombardier Recreational Products is expanding its commercial team in the UK with the addition of experienced off-road and motorcycle specialist Richard Gregg as district commercial manager.

The company says the appointment is part of their ongoing investment in its UK operation to meet the needs of its dealer network and the on-road and off-road markets.

Described as an experienced sales professional with 20 years’ experience, BRP say Richard will be the main point of contact for dealers in the Can-Am off-road, Can-Am on-road and SEA-DOO networks that are based in the North of England and Scotland. His role will see him implement business strategies that the company intends will drive sales opportunities for dealers. He will also support dealers on a one-to-one basis while providing them with retail/wholesale promotions and commercial activity.

Anita Gobbo, BRP regional commercial manager UK, Italy, Ireland and Spain, said, “The UK market is continuing to grow, so it was natural that the team would expand with it, and we are delighted to welcome Richard as our new district commercial manager. I’m confident that his experience and knowledge will lead to fruitful long-term working relationships with new and existing dealers.”

As part of an ongoing expansion programme, Claydon has appointed Akos Hutoczki to the role of after-sales and service manager.

“I am delighted to be joining Claydon at such an exciting stage in its development,” Akos said. “My role is to act as a link between the company, management team, manufacturing and service staff, together with our growing network of dealers on all aspects of after sales and service.

"My responsibilities include the development and implementation of training programmes and procedures to ensure that dealers’ sales staff and service technicians have all the information that they need to ensure that Claydon customers receive the best possible service, wherever they are located."

Reporting to design and manufacturing director Oliver Claydon, Akos is based at the company’s headquarters at Wickhambrook in Suffolk but will travel to dealers all over the world to ensure that they have the knowledge to fully support Claydon customers.

To celebrate their success earlier this year with the tractor speed record, JCB have produced a limited number of Special Editions of the Fastrac 4220 and 8330.

Just 25 examples of each model are being produced and the company says dealers in Europe, North America, New Zealand and Australia have been quick to place orders.

The enhanced appearance and equipment of the Special Edition tractors celebrates the achievement by a team of young JCB engineers and project partners.

In June 2019, JCB set a Guinness World Record for the fastest tractor at Elvington Airfield in Yorkshire. Called Fastrac One, the tractor reached a speed of 103.6 mph with motorbike racer and lorry mechanic Guy Martin in the driver’s seat.

JCB then embarked on an ambitious plan to break its own record and developed Fastrac Two - which is 10% lighter and even more streamlined than its smaller brother. In October, Fastrac Two hit an astonishing peak speed of 153.771mph on its way to recording an average of 135.191mph at Elvington.

JCB Agriculture Managing Director John Smith said, “The world record-setting WFT Fastrac is a remarkable piece of engineering and we are delighted to offer a select number of customers this unique opportunity to own a ‘World’s Fastest Tractor’ Special Edition Fastrac to share the celebration of this fantastic achievement.”

For the Special Edition tractors, the unique specification, features and capabilities of the standard Fastrac are enhanced inside and out with commemorative decals and additional equipment.

External enhancements comprise a distinctive chromed exhaust stack, special ‘Union Flag’ decals on the cab rear three-quarter panels, and embossed ‘JCBWFT’ lettering on the toolbox.

As operators climb aboard the Command Plus cab, they are greeted with the script ‘JCB Fastrac – Word’s Fastest Tractor’ etched into the doorway kick plate and woven into the grey door-to-door carpet.

This script is also embossed into the leather upholstery of the two full-size seats, which have distinctive yellow edge panels and stitching to match.

Operators also have the luxury of a JCB yellow-stitched leather-bound steering wheel with a ‘Fastrac at speed’ logo at its centre.

In addition, every Special Edition Fastrac 4220 and 8330 has a commemorative plaque identifying the tractor as one of just 25 examples of each model celebrating the record, along with a certificate of authenticity for the owner.

This Autumn Cobra are introducing an exciting new range of petrol powered chippers into their already comprehensive garden machinery range.

Powered by a 6.5hp Loncin engine the Cobra CHIP650L & CHIP650LE (Electric Start Model) are small and compact wood chippers which can easily chip branches up to 80mm (3") in diameter through it's large, self-feeding input chute.

Cobra CHIP650L

Both models are equipped with low emission Loncin 196cc engines which power the heavy duty rotor and twin reversible blades. The unique, hinged design of the chute allows easy access to the blades. To provide maximum safety for the user, the chipper features an emergency stop brake.

The CHIP650LE is also equipped with an electric start system for even easier user operation.

With their large wheels and user friendly design, the Cobra CHIP650L & CHIP650LE can be manoeuvred easily into most spaces in the garden. Supplied with tool kit, these are great value machines backed by a fantastic two year manufacturer's warranty.

The Cobra petrol chippers are packed with innovative features to help you create the perfect garden with the minimum of effort. Dealer Nett prices start from just £440.17 ex VAT.

For more information on Cobra products visit: www.cobragarden.co.uk or to become a Cobra dealer, please contact Andy Marvin on: 07771 581 296 or call our sales team: 0115 986 6646 today.

Garden Trader is helping send quality leads to specialist garden machinery dealers in the UK. It has been designed to support and promote our dealer industry to consumers who are specifically searching for garden machinery products and services.

It is easy and quick to register and costs just £96 + VAT per year to be listed and all revenues in 2019 will be reinvested into promoting the site online.

Garden Trader

Join the country’s only independent specialist website, created by the team that bring you Service Dealer. Join our subscribed Garden Trader dealers now by clicking on “Register Dealership” and let's fight back against the zero value retailers.

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