FARMING WITH POWER

Power Farming Ashburton has been servicing the Mid Canterbury agriculture industry for over 10 years, but their dedication to the community goes a lot deeper than just selling tractors and machinery.

WITH A THREE-GENERATION history of serving the New Zealand and Australian tractor and machinery markets, Power Farming Group was first established in 1977 by Laurie Maber and his son Geoff, who had previously run Maber Motors in Morrinsville. After securing the rights to distribute Iseki tractors in New Zealand and Australia, it wasn’t long before Power Group Farming had built a solid reputation for providing the very best quality tractor and machinery franchises from around the world.

Fast-forward to 2011, and Simon Jackson was eying a gap in the Ashburton agriculture market. He knew the area had a unique set of farming needs, but there was no local retailer to sell and service tractors and farm machinery. The stars aligned and he was approached by Geoff Maber of Power Farming Group to set up shop in Ashburton as an owner-operator.

‘After a 12-month honeymoon period, myself and my wife Emma bought our 50 per cent joint venture share and away we went, and we haven’t looked back.’

One of the benefits of being part of a large franchise is having the very best modern tractors, telehandlers and machinery at their disposal including respected brands such as Deutz-Fahr, Kioti, Merlo, McHale, Vicon, Maschio, Gaspardo and Kverneland to name a few, and specialised equipment that’s unique to Canterbury, explains Simon.

‘Farming doesn’t stop in Mid Canterbury – there’s something going on every day of the week and every day of the year. There is everything from milking cows to growing vegetable and grain crops that are harvested nearly 12 months of the year; and we have a big flower bulb industry that grows for America, Asia and Europe.’

And while advancements in technology such as automation, GPS, on-board computers and electric diagnostic tools have forged ahead in leaps and bounds over the last decade, another one of the biggest changes Simon has seen is the reduction of farm machinery.

‘In the past, a cropping farm or dairy farm would have two or three

tractors, but now they might only have one.’ Because Canterbury is farming more with less [machinery], each piece of equipment becomes even more important, says Simon. ‘If that piece of equipment goes down at the busiest time of year then it’s imperative we get it going as soon as possible.

‘Being part of the Power Farming Group means we not only get access to the latest and the best technology – off the back of it we get very good support with a dedicated team of technical specialists behind the scenes that are there to assist us.’

The range of products and the dedication to after-sales service are no doubt a huge part of the success of Power Farming Ashburton, but for Simon, the most integral part of his business is his team, which has grown from seven in 2011, to a team of 17 today. ‘Our people are the backbone of our business.’

‘I’ve got quite a young team, we have a lot of fun. But they’re hardworking, dedicated to the job, embrace the technology and most of them are from a rural background, and they really love what they do.

‘We take a lot of pride in nurturing young people in the community and developing them into professionals in their line of work,’ explains Simon. ‘We run about three to four apprentices in the business at any one time and we’re able to mentor them, train them up, and give them a career.

‘And the beauty of our business is we have a good ladder within our national dealership network to be able to go up the rung. So if there’s not room in our own business to grow their career and go to the next level, generally there’s a branch somewhere in New Zealand to take a more senior position.

‘And as long as people are bettering themselves, I’m always happy to see that. We have a few who want to do their OEs – at the moment we’ve got a technician who’s in Ireland doing an exchange programme; it’s exciting to have that up and running again.

‘My two most favourite things are seeing my staff succeed in their career and life and seeing happy customers get the most out of the products we sell them.

‘And if you have both of these you’ve got a pretty good business.’

‘We’re here to provide our customer with a solution, and will always help those to identify something that will help

them gain more out of their business.’

ABOVE ‘We see ourselves as more of a solution provider rather than a straight tractor or machinery sales business,’ says Simon. OPPOSITE Power Farming Ashburton sponsors a huge amount of activities in the local communities, including schools, Lion Club events, charities and sports groups. ‘It’s endless what we do in the local community, we just love to be involved.’