Forge Agri – A New Frontier Awaits

Staff at the store assist producers by offering suitable products and services based on their intimate knowledge of the specific farming activity. If a producer wants to purchase seed, for instance, they will establish whether he requires pasture seed or maize seed. Is the farm irrigated or dry land? Where is it situated? Is it a dairy or beef farm? Is it an intensive or extensive farmer? Making a sale is not their only objective. It is more about building a relationship with their customers and advising them on the best products suited to their farming activities. 

Training at Forge Agri Nottingham Road, as in the rest of the company, remains an ever-present focus point. “This is what differentiates us from our competitors: we have people in our business who are trained to understand the agricultural industry. For this reason, we place a lot of emphasis on training in order for our staff to not only to have a solid understanding of the products we offer, but also of how these are used on the farms,” Clive says.

Forge Agri regularly sends staff members on training courses provided by product manufacturers. Suppliers either visit the branch or staff members attend short courses elsewhere. In-house training in various disciplines is provided, which includes training for middle management and other staff because it makes far more business sense to promote people with experience from within a branch, rather than making new appointments. Forge Agri ensures that every single person in the branch has an understudy in case someone takes leave or gets ill.

When it comes to customers, Sharon stresses that they go out of their way to find the right product at the best price in the shortest possible time. When it comes to agriculture, time is always a factor. People don’t like to wait for days and therefore they use their vehicles for deliveries or arrange for the supplier to deliver to customers. 

“There are numerous benefits derived from being owned by a very big company in the sense that there is greater access to finance and way more negotiating power. This adds a lot of value to our business, and it is something we can pass on to our customers,” Clive emphasises their advantage in the region.

The Midlands area is known mainly for dairy farming, but beef, sheep, poultry, pigs and recently, fruit and nuts, play an important part in the local economy.

“On the dairy side, which is the largest agricultural business in this area, we supply bulk feed – bran, whole and crushed maize, lucerne and soya oil cake, among others,” according to Zane. 

The great advantage of having several branches in relatively close proximity, is that they can assist each other. Stock rotation between branches means that stock can be pulled from another branch quickly, rather than waiting for a supplier to deliver. This has really been key in their business, especially during lockdown. 

“One of the greatest benefits for producers here, is that we have everything under one roof,” Sharon explains. “When they buy animal medicine, they also see all the other products we offer. Fencing, irrigation, paint and the mixing thereof, tools, cement, stone, poles, animal health, you name it. We also deliver, using our trucks and bakkies. But our greatest advantage is customer service. It is unparalleled in this area,” Sharon describes what sets their branch apart.

Zane’s responsibilities include new business and packaging for the emerging blueberry and kiwi fruit markets. “I am now focussing on packaging which is a new entity for us. 

As published in the MARKtoe! magazine