SURVIVING THE RECESSION: Views from golf course managers, public sector and suppliers
BEST OF BRITISH: Dennis and Sisis, two British brands now together FEATURE: Winter maintenance programme DEALER PROFILE: Longham Garden Machinery, winner of the 2012 Marketing Award COURSE REVIEW: Trump International, winner of 2012 Best New Venue Award ON TEST:Makita brush cutters CONTRIBUTORS INCLUDE Scott MacCallum Chris Biddle James De Havilland Jane McPherson and of course . . Jim Green
The November issue of Turf Pro/Service Dealer is being published w/c 12 November
NOT SUCH A THING AS AN IDENTIKIT DEALER Signs of a growing maturity amongst the specialist dealer network
I like this ‘retirement’ game! Over the past few weeks I’ve had to chance to catch up and visit a number of garden machinery dealers to reflect on the season - and life in general. This week I’ve been in Lincolnshire, an area well represented in the ‘winners enclosure’ of the Dealer Awards presented last September.
One message has come through loud and clear. It’s been a good season for most, but in many ways a very demanding season, and tough to manage. Remember where we started. Threats of a hosepipe ban, then rain, and more rain, and more rain . . ..
So the right growing conditions have been in place, and sales have been pretty good - but margin, margin, margin continues to be the Number One concern. Yet, put it into context. Compared with many dealers in the US where they have had to cope with drought across much of America, following a very poor snow-blower season, or much of mainland Europe suffering from real economic woes - and the UK dealer has much to be thankful for.
At the moment, I’m writing a book reflecting on the past 25 years of the turf machinery industry (advance commercial, it’s called The Growing Years, a glossy hardback to be published next Spring) - and looking through the archives it is very clear that the industry has gone through a roller-coaster of market conditions.
I know exactly what Robin Nettle means when told me recently that over 40 years in the business was not a seamless building block of experience “but 40 different yearly experiences”.
Yet there are clear pointers to the way forward for the specialist dealer as we come to the end of this monumentous year and to my mind a number of trends are apparent
MORE FOCUS: Most dealers are no longer collectors of franchises, they now select a tighter and smaller range of brands to offer their customers.
DISPLAY: Many dealers are investing heavily, and plan to invest continuously, in creating welcoming and well-laid out showrooms. Good signage, clear pricing, use of suppliers POS and branding materials, TV information screens, good lighting and flooring and ‘browsability’ are the key.
INTERNET: The internet is coming of age. It is a valuable re-selling resource for some, but it is not for all. Those who do it properly have invested in the right ‘back-office’ support, but this is not an area for ‘dabbling-in’. Selling machines ‘off-patch’ has its consequences, but there is little doubt that many dealers have profited from on-line promotion of parts and accessories. Apart from trading, the internet has created a more level-playing field for promoting the business as in the past smaller companies could never compete in the press and TV with the major stores.
CONFIDENCE: It’s intangible I know, but I sense a greater maturity and confidence amongst specialist dealers than for many a year. Perhaps it’s a case of (to paraphrase Ronnie Corbett) “I know my place!” There appears to be less of a 'them and us' attitude between suppliers and dealers, the buzz word is now 'partnership' (as it should be)
However, this is still a small, committed, and very individual industry. There is not such a thing as an Idenikit Dealer. Standards, facilities and the approach to business varies across the country, so these are 'broad-brush' impressions which I'll be expanding on in the coming weeks
The 2013 Event Planner in a new, larger size, will once again contain dates of all the national and international industry shows and events. Published with the December issue of Turf Pro/Service Dealer TO ADVERTISE GEORGE MILLER E-mail or 020 3603 7936
