You may remember that last week I wrote about an event I had attended at Kew where Husqvarna were launching a new commercial partnership that will see their Automowers in use at the botanic gardens.
Whilst there I heard senior management for the manufacturer talk about what they expect from their dealers in order for them to be part of their new Pro Partner programme. Essentially the company want dealers to get out and about more, to fix and sell machinery in the field and to offer alternative means of financing through an Operational Lease scheme.
Now, due to what I think can be fairly described as a somewhat fractious relationship on occasion between Husqvarna and some of their dealers over the past couple of years, I'll be honest, I was expecting to hear some feedback from dealer readers on these comments. And couple of readers did indeed choose to leave their thoughts below the article anonymously.
One dealer said, "It sounds to me like Husqvarna is talking the talk while expecting their dealers to walk the walk.. . . Sorry, but I have been around too long to swallow 'manufacturerspeak'."
Whilst another said, "I think Husqvarna UK are the last company in our industry that should be giving advice on aftersales support and customer service. Perhaps the upper management at Husqvarna SHOULD spend more time in showrooms to understand the difficulties of dealers and to understand what we want/need from our suppliers."
We thank those readers who took the time to get in contact to let us know how they felt. As with everything we ever report on in Service Dealer, we always appreciate dealers at the sharp end contributing their honest thoughts. Please always feel free to get in touch to share your opinions on anything you read here, either by leaving a comment below an article or via dropping me a line.
Honest communication is key
I think when we see exchanges such as these that bump up against each other, what it highlights is just how important an ongoing, two-way, respectful dialogue is between the dealers and their supplying manufacturers. As we have said many times in the past, it must never be forgotten how both sides of the fence need and rely upon each other.
Our current diarist of a season, Jason Nettle of Winchester Garden Machinery, summed it up in one his entries in the magazine recently when he stated, "It’s all about working together - as a team with colleagues and .. also working together with the manufacturers and suppliers is important to help each other. I am in regular conversations with all the manufacturers that we deal with to help with the flow of information."
This is so true. Throughout Covid, whenever we spoke to our various panels of dealers, communication with suppliers always came up as a genuine priority for everyone. And this will not have changed.
Any relationship will of course be spiky on occasion. However much we'd like it to be so, we can't spend all our time expecting to be told by the other party how amazing we are. There needs to be an acceptance of some (reasonable) change and of taking on board constructive criticism - on both sides.
In fact it would seem fair to argue that constructive criticism can play a crucial role in establishing and nurturing trust between dealers and their manufacturer suppliers. Manufacturers should, quite clearly, be able to convey what they expect of their partners - but equally, dealers should feel comfortable in expressing any concerns they might have.
Then of course it's crucial that both sides actively listen to each other's feedback and suggestions. Business experts would say that taking action based on comments received demonstrates a commitment to continuous improvement and strengthens the bond between the parties.
As in any walk of life, genuine constructive criticism should not be viewed as a means to simply pick holes or assign blame, but rather as an opportunity to collaborate and find means of working together closer in the future.
I found a quote that said "trust is the cornerstone of a healthy and productive business relationship". I suppose part of this trust can be accepting that constructive criticism, when approached with openness and respect, plays a crucial role in building a collaborative bond - which in turn should hopefully lead to long-lasting partnerships that benefit both parties.
