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Giltrap Agrizone looks to future with expanded machinery focus and ongoing commitment to customer service, support

21 Nov 2023

Giltrap Agrizone is one of the largest agricultural machinery dealerships in New Zealand and it's just got bigger with the addition of a new machinery brand to the mix.

Andrew Giltrap is the dealer principal and his family has a proud history in the industry, his father Wilfred opening the doors on his business in 1959 and selling the Fiat brand of tractors.

Andrew opened his own agricultural machinery business in 1984 in Otorohanga, starting his own involvement with Fiat, which later became New Holland. In 2009, Giltraps purchased the Case IH dealership for the region in order to continue growing the business, and it was at that time they branched into more locations. Today, Giltrap Agrizone is in four locations across New Zealand's North Island – Otorohanga, Cambridge, Rotorua and Taupo – and employs more than 80 staff.

And, a few months ago, the New Holland brand made a return to Giltrap Agrizone following a decision by CNH Industrial to establish a new retail footprint for New Zealand. The decision was announced in late January and came into effect immediately, with CNH Industrial's Case IH dealerships stepping up to take on the New Holland brand during the transition.

"It has been a time of enormous change, and that's been challenging at times, but my team have stepped up and are doing everything they can to meet the needs of our customers, both existing customers and New Holland customers," said Andrew. 

"And, we've had really good feedback from customers on the service we've been able to provide and the issues we've been able to resolve, which has been very pleasing.

"We've been able to assure New Holland customers that we stand ready to support what they need, and for our Case IH customers it's very much 'business as usual', and they know the high level of service and support they have come to expect will continue."

​"We've worked hard to establish a business that our customers can rely on 24/7 with a team that's committed to getting the job done and offering the best possible service, support and advice" - Andrew Giltrap

Giltrap Agrizone has good supply of Case IH and New Holland tractor stock on the floor to meet demand and a recent innovation around parts supply is reaping rewards for customers, too.

Since July of last year CNH Industrial introduced another major initiative, parts hubs at CNHI dealerships around the country. The brand and dealers have made big investments in additional infrastructure to accommodate an increased parts holding, the idea being to further decrease the potential downtime for customers in the event of a machinery breakdown.

The Case IH hub been in place since August last year and Andrew said for customers it's meant there's more parts in stock, so there's a faster turnaround when there are issues. In addition to the hub, they have also made substantial additions to parts stock in all of their dealerships.

"We obviously can't have everything, but the amount of inventory that we have to pick on shelf as soon as there's an issue is much more now with substantial additional parts holdings. There's a more robust level of support for customers than 12 months ago because there's more parts on the shelves, so when there's a breakdown, there's a greater chance of turning it around straight away," he said.

Despite recruitment challenges, Giltrap Agrizone has added to its team recently, with Andrew praising his staff's passion, the depth of their experience and focus on the highest quality service.  

​"We're still a privately-owned and -operated family business and we're still here because we understand agriculture and the needs of our customers," he said. "We've worked hard to establish a business that our customers can rely on 24/7 with a team that's committed to getting the job done and offering the best possible service, support and advice." 


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