Roger Gill Agriculture has seen some big changes over the years, and the latest evolution of the business is one of the most significant yet and has dealer principal Phil Gill and his team excited for what’s to come.
Roger Gill Agriculture has traditionally been a Case IH dealership with branches in Pukekohe and Huntly, and a staff of about 26.
But, earlier this year, CNH Industrial announced the establishment of a new retail footprint for New Holland machinery in New Zealand, with many of CNH Industrial’s Case IH dealerships taking over dealer responsibilities for the New Holland brand.
For Phil, it’s been an amazing opportunity and one that’s brought a raft of new opportunities for the business and its team.
“It’s been a time of big change for us and we feel very fortunate to have been given the chance to sell New Holland machinery, and increase our brand offering,” Phil said.
“It’s exciting and brings so many benefits to the table for our entire range. We’re looking at increasing our staffing levels moving forward and plans for expansion are well underway. It’s also been great to get to know the New Holland customers in the region and show them the commitment to great service and support that’s such a big part of what we do.”
Phil said they were well progressed with plans for a new building at the Pukekohe site, to be completed next year, providing additional space for the growing business.
“We had been planning to expand prior to New Holland coming on board, but now we’re reworking those plans to ensure we’ve got the room we need to accommodate all our brands in the best way possible,” he said.
The region in which Roger Gill Agriculture operates is highly productive, with Pukekohe described as the “onion and spud capital of New Zealand”. Carrots, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, broccolini, lettuce and in summer, watermelons, are also important crops. In the Huntly area, dairy and beef producers are abundant.
In terms of product demand, the higher horsepower tractors like the Case IH Magnum and New Holland T8 are more sought after around Pukekohe for tasks like discing, ripping and harrowing, as well as mid-range tractors for more precision tasks. The lower horsepower tractors are also in demand from Huntly customers.
“But we live in a belt, too, where it’s the biggest market for compact tractors in New Zealand, with a lot of ‘lifestylers’ as we call them, so they enjoy our Case IH Farmall Bs and New Holland Boomer range. That’s a real growth area for us,” Phil said.
“Balers are popular with our customers as well, around the Waikato and Pukekohe areas predominantly, with both conventional and combination balers a big market for us.”
It had been a great year to date, Phil said, and while staff recruitment remained somewhat of a challenge – as it is across the whole industry – the opportunities that had emerged to continue to grow the well-established business, and the current industry outlook, were reasons to feel excited for the future.
“We certainly don’t take these kinds of opportunities for granted, and our whole team has grasped them with both hands, and are committed to making the most of them for our customers and their businesses,” Phil said.