Brandt starting to make its mark in New Zealand

Brandt, the John Deere agriculture, construction and forestry dealer, was certainly pushing the boat out for its first time at the event. The company’s aim was to show current and potential customers what it has to offer the New Zealand market.

Originally acquiring the Cervus Group back in October 2021 in its initial move into NZ, this was followed by the purchase of AgrowQuip and its depots in January 2023. This means the company now operates from 17 sites in the North Island. As Rural News goes to press, we understand that the final piece of the North Island puzzle will be completed as Brandt has agreed in principle to take over the Masterton -based Wairarapa Machinery Services, that has served the Greater Wellington region since 1983.

Headquartered in Regina, Saskatchewan in Canada, the Brandt operation is multi-faceted, including agriculture, construction and forestry – alongside manufacturing, engineering and positioning – with trucks and trailers also playing a part. One of Canada’s largest privately owned businesses, the Brandt story is certainly one of superlatives.

Company patriarch Gavin Semple was one of six children who grew up on a Saskatchewan cereal farm. After leaving Luther College, he realised that his future was probably off-farm, so he started on a journey to becoming a salesman. Working long hours in a dealership, Semple moved from sales cadet to sales manager, higher management and eventually became the dealership owner.

By 1984, the company had expanded into a business with 60 employees and an annual turnover of Canadian $5m (NZ$6.15m).

In 1991, an opportunity saw Brandt become the John Deere construction and forestry dealers for all of Canada. Over the ensuing 32 years, the company grew and now operates from 135 stores that employs 5000 people. It has a manufacturing division that employs 1500 workers and cumulatively generates around Canadian $5 billion turnover ($NZ6.1bn).

Looking at the broader picture, the size and scope of the Brandt operation means the company takes around 5% of John Deere’s total agricultural production and a quite staggering 15% of their construction and forestry output.

“I come from a family where my grandfather said we can’t use the word ‘can’t’ and there were no excuses accepted for not succeeding – a phrase that was passed down to me at the bottom of the food chain,” explains current chief executive Shaun Semple. “If I wanted to eat, I had to get out and earn some business – which often meant making cold calls after 4pm on a Friday afternoon.”

With an expanding New Zealand presence, Semple has visited the country five times, a huge effort, given the constraints placed on travel with Covid.

“In these early days, it is paramount we understand the industries we supply, so I expect our staff to be out in the field, rather than driving a desk at one of our depots,” he says.

“We strive to employ the best people and realised many years ago that after 5pm we only have a nice building. We like to invest in our employees, so everyone is part of a profit share scheme, meaning that empowered and committed workers own the business.”

This also means the company has employees who have been with it for more than 20 to 25 years.

Semple says there will be a need to invest in larger sites with better infrastructure, to allow better work efficiencies, easier access for customers and a great working environment. He adds that there will also be a significant investment in what will likely become a Brandt NZ headquarters, that will become a centre of excellence for parts, service and training and a location for customers to experience the Brandt philosophy up close.

Keen supporters of the communities in which they operate, Brandt has already directed $100,000 to flood affected areas of the East Coast, while also producing help to get machinery up and running quickly.

“In some ways, our approach to sales and support is quite simple: understand the problem, offer a solution and support customers with integrity,” Semple says.

“With three sons and many family members involved in the business, Brandt is committed to creating a new standard for a family business in New Zealand.”