Business South March 2021

72 | RURAL Power Farming Gore Committed to serving rural base PFG sells new and used tractors, cultivation machinery, seed mixers and machinery for feeding, grass management, crop management and telehandlers. P ower Farming Gore dealer principal Peter Shaw is part of a team driving a business genuinely committed to adding value for its customers. Having both previously owned a farm and worked in machinery sales, Peter has an acute sense of what the grass looks like from both sides of the fence, especially what it is like to be a customer making a substantial capital purchase. The origins of Power Farming Holdings Lim- ited (PFG) go back to Maber Motors, a small one-man operation established by Laurie Maber in 1948 to sell and service tractors and implements to the local farming community in Morrinsville, New Zealand. Over the years Maber Motors expanded to three retail branches, thanks largely to Laurie’s unfaltering commitment to service and backup, a passion shared by the Power Farming Gore team. Laurie’s son Geoff joined Maber Motors soon after leaving school. “Power Farming is one of the few fami- ly-owned business’ in the agricultural sector; it’s coming into the third generation,” Peter says. In 1977, Maber Motors secured the rights to distribute Iseki tractors in New Zealand, and Geoff eventually formed a separate wholesale company, Power Farming, to fully develop this new opportunity. During the next two decades the company gradually built a stable of high quality tractor and machinery franchises from around the world. In 2004 the company acquired Howard Aus- tralia, an iconic Sydney based importer and distributor of cultivation, mowing, seeding, and feeding equipment. Howard branded products now represent a key part of the company’s product line-up. In 2017 PFG expanded its international footprint by securing the exclusive distribution rights to Deutz-Fahr tractors in the US. Power Farming Group has made a consider- able investment in people, facilities, and tech- nology, all aimed at serving a customer base spread throughout Australia, New Zealand and the United States. The company sells new and used tractors, cultivation machinery, seed mixers and ma- chinery for feeding, grass management, crop management and telehandlers. Peter has been the Power Farming Gore dealer principal for nearly three years and “If a person is spending a few hundred thousand dollars for a machine I believe there has to be ongoing value added to the purchase” T Russell Fredric during this time he has seen a need to raise the overall customer service standard in the machinery sales and servicing industry. “If a person is spending a few hundred thousand dollars for a machine I believe there has to be ongoing value added to the purchase,” he says. Examples of the added value Power Farm- ing provide is free tuition for contractor’s staff who drive balers and machinery and tuition for dairy farmers who have taken on new staff at the start of a season. Another crucial aspect of after sales service is providing sound advice about the best time to replace a machine, taking into account its second hand value and ongoing operating costs, a decision that can potentially save thousands of dollars. This kind of information and added value not only strengthens personal and business relationships and creates savings for the machinery owners, but avoids falling into the trap of competing on price alone which Peter believes ultimately becomes a losing proposi- tion for all concerned. “There’s always an optimal time to sell a piece of equipment, there’s always an optimal time to do with interest rates and other fac- tors to buy.” Telephone: (03) 215-7302 www.bearingreplacements.co.nz sales@bearingreplacements.co.nz 24 hours cell: 0275397579 164 North Rd, Invercargill 9810, New Zealand Proud Supporters and Suppliers to Power Farming - Gore Hydraulic Hose Repair & Servicing Available 24/7 - No Call Out Free Ph Chris Parish 021 274 9372 www.cphydraulics.co.nz 18 Racecourse Road, Charlton, GORE