Ron and Wilmy Kloprogge began dealing in forklifts and pallet jacks from their Cairns based business, Matchport Materials Handling, in January of 1997. Providing a fullservice business for customers throughout the Far North Queensland region, they have seen Matchport Materials Handling grow from strength to strength.

Words and pictures: Lara Wilde

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Ron, how did you get started in the Automotive Industry?

RK: I completed my trade as an electrician and truck mechanic in Europe as a young man. Upon arriving in Australia, I converted my qualifications to become a qualified Diesel Fitter Class III. My work to date has been mostly on trucks and large machinery.

How did Matchport Materials Handling come to be?

RK: In 1997, my wife Wilmy and I saw a need for a business in Cairns to service the region with machinery sales, service and repair. We decided to open Matchport Materials and Handling, establishing it in the Far North Queensland region from scratch. Our focus has always been on customer service with complete accountability for every aspect.

What services do you offer through Matchport Materials Handling?

RK: Matchport Materials Handling provides sales, service, repair, and rental for machinery, particularly forklifts and excavators. I like our customers to know that from the moment they need a piece of equipment, Matchport Materials Handling will take care of them – from finding the perfect machine, to finding the right rental or purchase plan, through to the servicing of the plant item and any repairs they need. We are also a dealer for Caterpillar and Mitsubishi.

Do you specialise in any particular products or services?

RK: Our focus is very much on the light industrial plant. Machines like forklifts and pallet jacks are our bread and butter. We provide a hands-on customer service that focusses on tailoring solutions to meet our clients’ unique needs.

Who is currently in the Matchport Materials Handling team?

RK: The team consists of myself, my wife Wilmy, and Aaron, Josh and Zac. We are lucky to have a small, dedicated team who understand that ours is a family business.

What is the greatest advantage to having your wife Wilmy working by your side in the business?

RK: We are on the same team, so it stops any misunderstandings or arguments at home. We both know what pressures the other is under at home and work so we can work together to support each other.

How important is training and professional development for your staff?

RK: We place a lot of value on training for our staff. Any opportunity to upskill them is grabbed quickly. We are very proud that we have put seven staff members through their apprenticeships.

Matchport Materials Handling sponsors a lot of local motorsport. Is this a key part of your marketing strategy?

RK: We are sponsors for race teams and for motorsport venues such as Springmount Raceway. We like to believe that any marketing will help our business by making people aware of who we are and
what we do.

What importance do you please on social media for Matchport Materials Handling?

RK: We are still a little old school. Social media is something we are learning and slowly embracing. Our customers from the older generation will still find us through word of mouth and trust us if they receive a referral from someone they trust. Meanwhile our customers from the younger generation will search for us on social media and will seek reviews and evidence of our work. So, while it does not come naturally to us, we must still cater for social media as a marketing platform.

What do you consider to be the greatest advancement in technology for Matchport Materials Handling?

RK: The internet has been a gamechanger for our business. We rely heavily on parts sourced from overseas and the internet has allowed us to provide a better service for our customers. The ability to easily and efficiently communicate has meant that we can more effectively research, get custom advice and source parts from anywhere in the world.

Do you consider that the advancements in electric vehicles will have an impact on your business and if so how?

RK: We regularly deal with very sophisticated electric forklifts. A number of years ago our machines featured re-gen, solid state electronics, and very sophisticated chargers and battery packs. We began upskilling and training our staff years ago to meet our customer’s demands. I believe that our fitters are far more advanced with electric vehicles than many car mechanics in the region.

When did you become a member of MTA Queensland?

RK: We first joined MTA Queensland in July 2015. Since then we have benefitted from the up-to-date industry information and the automotive business experts within the member network.

Has Covid-19 had an impact on your business?

RK: Very much. Covid has impacted our customers and their business and that has had a flow-on impact for us. We have survived the pilot strike, the recession we had to have, and the global financial crisis. Matchport Materials Handling is well established in the Cairns community and we believe we will survive the Covid crisis too.

What strategies have you put in place to address the impact of Covid for you and your customers?

RK: We have adopted several protocols and implemented them through all elements of Matchport Materials Handling. An example of one of those protocols is disinfecting machinery before and after we start working on them both in the workshop and on site. We place stickers on the steering wheel to indicate that the protocol has been completed.

Do you have any major plans for the business in the future?

RK: No, we intend to keep doing what we are doing. We take great pride in providing a full service for our customers and we plan to continue doing that.

What advice would you give a young Ron Kloprogge starting out in business today?

RK: Believe in yourself. Be honest and stand up and own any faults or mistakes you make. Be prepared to back yourself and remember that no one is perfect.

Source: Motor Trader e-Magazine (December 2020 / January 2021)

17 December 2020