In 1967, the first NAMPO event attracted 200 farmers from the Free State and the old western Transvaal – a far cry from the attendance figure of 72 376 in 2013.

The importance of the agricultural sector for the transport industry can be seen at the number of exhibitors who return year after year.

Simon Foulds contacted all the relevant transport exhibitors who attended this year’s event to find out why NAMPO is a considered as a platform for them in doing business and building key relationships with customers. Scania, Hino, International Trucks, Afrit, Tubestone, Chieftain Africa, Lube Power and Diesel Guard all responded.

Relevance

Gideon de Swardt, corporate relations manager at Scania, says: “NAMPO is the biggest privately owned agricultural show in the southern hemisphere and for us it is critical to be an exhibitor there.

“This year was a great success for us because everyone going there goes with the intention of doing business. We sold one of used trucks on the stand within the first hour of the event opening on the first day. It is a great event to sell our used trucks because it makes perfect sense for a farmer to purchase a good used truck because they do not do high mileage travel.”

He adds that the visitors are knowledgeable about technical issues and farmers attend the event with  a specific purchase in mind.

 

Kim Scott, marketing manager at International Trucks, concurs. “Many of the visitors are key decision makers in their business and attend the event with the intention of purchasing products or getting the required information about products they intend to purchase at a later stage. We have generated a number of sales leads from NAMPO over the years, which we have converted to confirmed orders over the years.”

 

Sameera Khan, marketing manager at Hino, says that NAMPO is one of the most important events on the company’s marketing calendar as a significant number of its clientele within the agricultural sector attend the show. “NAMPO is the ‘go-to’ show for comparing all your agricultural needs and it provides the exhibitor with a credible concentrated platform to showcase our products.”

 

Accessories and lubricants

Rynhardt Steenkamp, Afrit’s marketing coordinator, adds: “NAMPO gives us a valuable opportunity to interact with our target market. It provides a platform for both new and existing clients to have some personal interaction with many of our sales executives while also getting a chance to view a wide display of our products.

“Taking these aspects into consideration, it is an exhibition that we cannot afford to miss, the amount of clients that visited this year is truly of great value to us.”

Steenkamp adds that Afrit personnel are able to further mingle with other truck/trailer manufacturers and important delegates from the media sector within our industry.

Tubestone exhibited its range of tyres and rims for the fifth year in a row and marketing manager Yolandi Donaldson believes: no one in the agricultural business can afford to not be at NAMPO.

Nicholas Ryan, CEO of Chieftain Africa, said: “This was the first year we exhibited our Chieftain Trailers and it will not be the last.”

This year was the eighth year in which NAMPO attracted more than 600 exhibitors of outstanding quality. Interest among visitors was enormous, and exhibitors once again received numerous enquiries. Increasing interest was also shown by international exhibitors and visitors.

Pierre Duvenhage, director at Lube Power, says: “This is our 14th year at NAMPO and for us it is imperative that we be there. What makes this event different from other shows is that we can sell directly off the stand, so we can judge immediately whether we are getting a return on monies invested in the show.”

Louis Marais, Diesel Guard MD, adds: “This is the only real show where you are exposed to the full agricultural sector in South Africa. The show has allowed us to enter the agricultural market without having to market to farmers on an individual basis.”

On exhibiting

Regarding the products being exhibited, De Swardt says that his year’s stand was not just about Scania’s hardware and trucks, the company also decided to also showcase its services.

“The Scania product is something that generates income for a company. But there are also various services we can offer a customer, ranging from in-house financing and insurance to maintenance, spares and driver training. The whole idea and theme with our stand was to display all the services Scania can offer customers and have key personal from each department on the stand discussing the products and services with the agricultural industry.”

Scania also had a fully furnished break down van on the stand as well as a truck driver simulator.

International Trucks displayed its 9800i 6×4 truck tractor alongside a relatively new addition to the line-up: the TranStar 6×4 truck tractor. The Cummins ISX and ISM engines which power these two trucks, respectively, were also on display.

Hino had a diverse range of products on show, including the 300 bus, 500 cattle truck, 700 2848 AMT Truck Tractor, 300 game viewer and the 300 814 LWB drop side.

Khan says: “The 700 Truck Tractor is excellent for farming applications and our 300 814 LWB drop side is great for farmers looking for a general application truck.”

On the Afrit stand, the company displayed six different trailers: a drop-side side tipper, end-tipper and fridge unit alongside three customised trailers (a Tautliner, Moving Floor and a 25 m³ side-tipper). A far cry from the company’s first stand at NAMPO six years ago, which comprised just a gazebo and boxes of brochures.

Chieftain Trailers had six products displayed, all of which related to a farmer’s needs.

Lube Power showcased its range of pneumatic and manual lubrication as well as its diesel pumps and filters.

Diesel Guard had its full range of system protection, anti-siphoning units as well as its DIY Tipper Trailer on display. Marais says: “These products are of particular interest to all transport operators, including the farming sector, due to the extent of diesel pilferage within the country.”

Highlight

De Swardt says: “With our bigger stand we were able to really display our full range of products and services, and it was great meeting both old and new customers from around the country and from other African countries as well. Business was good and we are really looking forward to the next one in 2014.”

Steenkamp says the highlight was the response from customers to the products on the company’s stand. “We put a lot of effort prior to the event in inviting clients and potential clients to visit us and we were impressed with the amount of farmers who visited our stand as a result.”

Scott states: “For us it was wonderful engaging with customers – old and new – as well as reinforcing the brand’s commitment to the agricultural fraternity.”

According to Donaldson, the launch of the inaugural South African Ploughing Competition, which was sponsored by BKT, one of its brands, was a particular highlight.

Ryan says: “For us it was being able to attract key potential customers to our stand and get their stamp of approval for our products as a new supplier to this market.”

Duvenhage says: “It was great simple interacting with the farming community, who are really friendly and honourable people.”

Marais concurs: “There was unbelievable hospitality from the farming community and organisers, and there was real interest express in our product range. We are able to offer the agricultural sector a viable and workable solution to their fuel pilferage problems.”