AFGRI Equipment secures John Deere Construction & Forestry Equipment franchise
Appointed distributor for Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana and AFGRI’s South African territories
Centurion, 23 March 2021 – AFGRI Equipment, part of the AFGRI Group, is proud to announce that it has been appointed the sole distributor of John Deere’s Construction & Forestry range of equipment in Botswana, Zimbabwe, Zambia and AFGRI’s areas of operation in South Africa.
According to Patrick Roux, Managing Director of AFGRI Equipment, this builds on the successful partnership already in place with John Deere in Western Australia, where AFGRI Equipment is the single largest distributor of the Construction & Forestry range. The extensive AFGRI Equipment branch network in Western Australia has been instrumental in further building the John Deere brand since AFGRI Equipment’s appointment to market the range in early 2019.
“The success we’ve enjoyed with the John Deere agricultural range in southern Africa , combined with our outstanding service levels and ethos, as well as excellent customer relationships, established a solid base of operations to further build out and strengthen the Deere brand, given the synergies that exist between the agricultural and construction equipment ranges.”
Roux added that AFGRI Equipment was delighted with the appointment, which certainly cements the relationship with John Deere. “However, more important is the ability to now offer these markets access to this well-respected and premium range of equipment. John Deere is well aware of our established footprint in these countries, and certainly that was another factor in their decision.”
This appointment provides AFGRI Equipment with a solid diversification angle to the business and sector to support, which will strongly underpin sustainability and growth.
Roux added that he was confident that AFGRI Equipment’s deep retail knowledge and experience in the agricultural sector could easily be transferred to the construction and forestry space. “We have become the ‘go to’ company for many farmers, and we’re truly delighted to extend our services to local mining, construction and forestry companies, with the hope that we will earn this same reputation.”
Initially the Construction & Forestry range will be available through selected AFGRI Equipment branches, with the idea being to develop a stand-alone Construction & Forestry business unit in due course. To this end, Pieter Nel has been appointed to head up the business. Nel has extensive experience in both construction, agricultural and so-called yellow equipment.
“We look forward to working with new clients to introduce an extensive range of solutions, purposefully built on the backbone of technology to drive down the costs of operation and increase efficiency,” concluded Roux.
