Hot, wet, summer weather makes the grass grow and business boom for Malanda Mowers & Mechanical in Far North Queensland. Motor Trader dropped in to see Hannes Du Plessis and the team to learn more about how this unassuming small business is taking off in leaps and bounds.

Words & Photos: Lara Wilde

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Malanda Mowers & Mechanical has been around for a long time. Can you tell us a little about how the business began?

HDP: The workshop first opened about 20 years ago. It was just one bay in the garage of Marano’s Fuel and Oils service station. Over time the business grew and expanded to take over the workshops behind the service station and the building next door.

Have you always had a passion for lawn mowers and the mower business?

HDP: Not at all. I started my trade as a fitter in South Africa in the family business. Since moving to the Atherton Tablelands, I have worked for a number of local businesses. At the start of this year, when the chance came up to be my own boss, I took it.

What is your main role at Malanda Mowers and Mechanical? On the tools, selling stock or something else?

HDP: I really enjoy working hands-on with our customers. I get out and do demonstrations in their yards, I pick up mowers for servicing and I deliver the new machines. It is great to have a chat with them and to meet their neighbours.

Who is in your team to look after the shop while you are out and about on the road?

HDP: There are eight of us in the team at the moment. Combined, we have more than 65 years of industry experience.

My manager is Michael Wagner. He has been working in the business for a lot longer than me and he is fantastic – super friendly with our customers, very professional and he is across all of our products and services with a strong background in sales, assembly of products and office administration.

Helping Michael out in the office is Melissa, providing administration support a few days a week. Alex backs up Michael with sales and customer service. Dean and his apprentice Keanu take care of the automotive mechanical repairs and maintenance. Ben and Alan take care of our small engines providing repairs and maintenance to all of the mowers, chainsaws and similar-sized machines.

What is the core offering of products and services at Malanda Mowers and Mechanical?

HDP: At our core, we are a one-stop shop for sales and service of domestic and professional outdoor equipment. We sell a wide range of brand-new mowers and related power equipment such as blowers, chainsaws, pressure cleaners and brush cutters. We stock high-quality brands including Hustler, Gravely, Greenfield, Husqvarna, Bush Ranger, Bar Pressure Cleaners and Bobcat.

Our customer service is complete, delivering new purchases to the home, on-site servicing and maintenance, repairs and servicing in the workshop with a pick-up and delivery service, and detailed product advice.

We also have an automotive workshop that provides mechanical repairs, logbook servicing and roadworthy certificates for passenger and small commercial vehicles. Those mechanical repairs can include everything from tyre fitting and wheel alignments through to diagnostics and ECU remapping and engine rebuilds.

As I said, we are truly a one stop shop.

Who is your main type of Malanda Mowers and Mechanical customer?

HDP: In all honesty we have a little bit of everyone. Ma and Pa customers who want domestic equipment to use at home; farmers and primary producers looking for heavier duty machinery; and commercial clients such as schools, councils, landscapers and small businesses who need reliability and consistency from their equipment.

What is your Malanda Mowers and Mechanical marketing strategy?

HDP: We have a website and a Facebook page that I manage. We also print brochures and flyers, and we advertise on the radio. By far our best marketing is word of mouth. The majority of our customers find us because a friend or family member recommended us. We are very proud of our reputation locally.

When you say locally, how far do you reach?

HDP: We go everywhere. From Cooktown in the North through to the southern reaches of the Atherton Tablelands heading into the Gulf. A lot of our customers – like farmers and councils – take in a big footprint so we have to follow them where they need us.

What has been your biggest business challenge in 2022?

HDP: Without a doubt the biggest challenge has been sourcing stock. Covid, floods, rising fuel costs, and high consumer demand have all taken a toll. We are slowly securing our supply lines. While we might secure stock, we have also been hit with costs and unreliability in freight. Increased fuel costs, delays in delivery and unpredictable freight charges have made it hard to maintain our high level of customer service.

What changes do you see in the industry that will impact you?

HDP: We are really excited about developments in the industry. Technology is taking big steps and the mower and mechanical industry is keeping pace. We are stocking a lot more products that are battery operated and the range of Husqvarna battery-powered robotic automatic mowers is really revolutionary. They don’t need nearly as much mechanical maintenance and they suit our climate here where the grass grows fast. We make sure our staff are trained and up to speed to maintain and repair the newest offerings.

What are your plans for the business moving forward?

HDP: We are beginning to stock a lot more four-wheelers and side-by-side vehicles for farm use. The other big development for the business will be the implementation of systems and processes to reduce our turnaround times. Currently we get very busy and it can take our team up to two weeks to turn repair jobs around. We want to reduce that and streamline our systems so customers can get their machines back to work faster.

Source: Motor Trader e-Magazine (December 2022/January 2023) 

4 January 2022