Well that rain was a bit of a tease wasn't it? It appears there's a second heatwave upon us now and another dry period coming up. Just what we didn't need!

I know some dealers are really struggling out there at the moment. It doesn't seem to be across the board by any means as some dealerships are saying they are as busy as ever. But certainly, these prolonged dry conditions are having quite an adverse impact on many.

Some of the comments received into Service Dealer recently have been quite concerning. A few examples include:

• "I am not making enough money for me or my wife to take a wage."
• "Very poor sales. Workshop slowing up every day."
• "No sales, minimal repair work – it’s like December but with sunshine!"

There's certainly no denying that this season is proving particularly tough for some. I'm aware that taking the ultimate step of closing the business has unfortunately been the case for one dealer. It's always a sad day when it comes to that for a small business.

It's hard not to get bogged down in the doom and gloom - but we really should try to look beyond this tough period. I know some dealers are using this enforced quieter spell to do a spot of housekeeping and get things in order for when things pick up again - which they will.

Hopefully the season will extend on further into the year, making it possible for dealers, many of whom tell us they actually had a great start to 2018, to make up for lost summer ground.

And whilst it may be quiet out on the front lines at the moment, there is clearly plenty going on at the manufacturer / distributor level - as evidenced by all the stories of acquisitions in the news today.

It certainly came as surprise to me to hear that Rochfords has been bought by AL-KO Gardentech. Congratulations to all involved. The Wincanton-based company has told Service Dealer that all divisions, staff and product lines remain unchanged - but with the added benefit of developing new product categories from the AL-KO company in new channels.

All very exciting. I'm sure we'll hear much more about what's in store and future plans when Rochford hold their roadshows across the country next month.

There's also news out of the US today of a couple of the major players buying up smaller manufacturers in both the commerical turfcare and agricultural sectors. Briggs & Stratton have bought Hurricane Inc who produce a range of stand-on blowers and John Deere have purchased Argentinian company PLA who make self-propelled sprayers.

Moves like these definitely show a confidence in the market by these companies. And hopefully they should all be good news for dealers.

If there's more and better developed products out there to fill the showrooms, that means more choice for the customers who hopefully will be encouraged to invest in new equipment.

We just need this weather to buck its ideas up first . . .