I can’t quite believe it has come around to that time of year again, but here we are. The nominations for our Dealer of the Year Awards 2026 are now open – and I’d really like to take this opportunity to encourage you all to make sure that your dealership is in the running for an honour this year.

It’s been quite the 12 months for our industry. As always, there have been challenges to navigate, not least from the weather. Too wet, too dry - and sometimes both within what feels like the same week! Dealers across all machinery specialisms have had to quite literally keep calm and carry on through all of it.

But we know that our talented, entrepreneurial dealer readers do more than just cope.

They find ways to thrive. They pivot. They innovate. They diversify. They find new ways of serving their customers and supporting their local communities. And, importantly, they keep those businesses moving forward when circumstances might suggest that doing anything of the sort is an impossibility.

And those are precisely the stories our judges want to hear.

Yes, we need to know about your business and what you've achieved, but we're particularly interested in the narratives and the human stories behind those achievements. We want to hear tales that ourselves and our wider community of dealer readers can relate to, learn from and be inspired by. So please do tell us what your dealership has been up to over the past 12 months and, quite simply, why you deserve to win.

We have categories covering all machinery sectors in which our valued dealer readers specialise. This year we're looking for Garden Machinery, Farm Machinery, Professional Turfcare, Forestry and, for the first time, Plant Hire & Construction Dealers of the Year. In each of these areas we want to hear why your business is the go-to, trusted partner for your local community of customers.

There are also awards recognising the people who make dealerships tick; the Leadership Award and the New Technician of the Year prize. And then there’s the Best New Initiative Award, for those businesses that have introduced something fresh to their business for the first time over the past year.

And, of course, every category winner will go into the running for the prestigious Overall Dealer of the Year title, once again supported by our principal sponsor, AL-KO & Weibang. A huge thank you to them, and to all our other highly valued sponsors who continue to make these popular awards and our conference possible. You can discover more about who they all are on the nominations page on our website.

So, if you’ve entered before, please do so again. If you’ve never entered, make this the year you give it a go.

And please don't think you need to be the biggest dealership, have the hugest turnover or the most branches to have a chance. We’re looking for great stories. Stories about people, businesses and ideas that have made a difference.

The judges are looking for the entries that make them sit up, take notice and think: “Wow… that one!”

So, start getting those entries prepared. Dig out any videos or photos that you think can help support your entry if you like, think about what you've achieved, talk to your team and tell us your story.

We’d genuinely love to hear from you.

Get entering!