Photo: Yolanda Lemmer
Some exhibitors at the annual Nampo Harvest Day show say clients spent less money on high-end farming equipment this year compared to last year.
Felix Seitz, managing director of AGCO Africa, whose company had a significant presence at Nampo, said they observed a trend in which farmers were opting to buy smaller tractors valued at around R250 000, rather than investing in models worth millions.
Johan Hickman, sales representative for Radium Engineering, which specialises in, among other things, harvesters, feed mixers, and equipment maintenance echoed Seitz’s sentiments, noting that farmers were very interested in more cost-efficient equipment, and opted for smaller tractors and machinery valued between R30 000 and R300 000.
“Fewer farmers made online cash transactions, and more had to apply for finance. In general, we generated a lot of leads, which made it worthwhile for our company.”
AFGRI, which focuses more on agricultural financial services, agreed with this assessment. Antonie Broodryk, digital marketing specialist at AFGRI, said their main objective at Nampo this year was to build relationships. “We wanted to spend time with the farmers to understand their needs,” he said.
However, small business owner Chris Davel, whom installs anti-siphoning devices into machinery to prevent diesel theft and sells a series of equipment that enables one to turn invasive plants like Blackwattle into pellets used as animal feed, told Farmer’s Weekly that he had been an exhibitor at Nampo for seven years and that this was his most successful year yet.
Dr Dirk Strydom, managing director of Nampo, earlier this week said it was more important to measure the value of business conducted over the four days than simply to count how many people passed through the gates of Nampo Park.
He added that Nampo is not necessarily known for immediate cash spending, but rather for generating valuable business leads. Last year’s drought, he said, may have caused cash flow issues that have carried over into this year.
Today is the last day of Nampo, and throughout the week, approximately 66 497 visitors passed through the gates.
The last day at Nampo
This year also saw an influx of learners on field trips, some travelling from as far afield as Lydenburg in Mpumalanga.
“[While] we do not actively promote Nampo to schools, it is important to note that these school trips have educational value. The exhibitors have gone out of their way to accommodate the learners. I know that some have dedicated staff members who attend to their queries and educate them on the inner workings of their implements and other products,” he said.
