Bigger McCormick territory and new salesman for HJR Agri

Carwyn Williams, HJR Agri’s new man in north Wales: “The McCormick range is very suitable for the farms in my area,” he says.
Carwyn Williams, HJR Agri’s new man in north Wales: “The McCormick range is very suitable for the farms in my area,” he says.

A farm machinery business set up just five years ago is already expanding thanks to the standard of parts and service back-up it provides customers.

HJR Agri (Oswestry) Ltd was formed in 2008 by former Burgess employees Terry and Alan Hughes, Melfyn Jones and Andy Roberts. They started representing the McCormick tractor range in west Shropshire and mid-Wales a year later.

Their performance since then has given McCormick distributor AgriArgo the confidence to extend the company’s sales and service support territory into north Wales, from just west of Chester to Conwy, where it borders the area covered by Anglesey-based PGF Agri.

“Despite starting from scratch, Terry Hughes and his colleagues at HJR Agri have consistently been one of our best dealers in terms of sales,” says Ray Spinks, general manager and sales director at AgriArgo UK. “But they have also earned an excellent reputation among customers for after-sales service; they always respond quickly and are keen to sort out any issues.”

It’s a deal! Carwyn Williams (right), HJR Agri’s new man in north Wales, with Gethin Vaughan of D Vaughan & Son in front of a McCormick MTX150 tractor of the type now being operated by the Denbigh-based contractor.
It’s a deal! Carwyn Williams (right), HJR Agri’s new man in north Wales, with Gethin Vaughan of D Vaughan & Son in front of a McCormick MTX150 tractor of the type now being operated by the Denbigh-based contractor.

A year after taking on the McCormick tractor franchise, HJR Agri won the Emerging Dealer of the Year title in awards promoted to highlight excellence in agricultural equipment sales and service.

Andy Roberts and Malcolm Davies run the well-stocked parts department, while Alan Hughes and Melfyn Jones work alongside another two trained technicians – Brian Burrows and Richard Ball – handling routine servicing and repairs, either on-farm or at the Oswestry premises.

“Naturally, if we need to put in more service resources to meet demand across our new territory, then we’ll put them in,” says managing director Terry Hughes, who handles sales. “Farmers understand that tractors sometimes break-down and as long as we do our best to sort them out quickly and efficiently, they’re happy with that.”

The McCormick X60 series – this is the 112/121hp X60.50 – is one of HJR Agri’s best-selling tractors.
The McCormick X60 series – this is the 112/121hp X60.50 – is one of HJR Agri’s best-selling tractors.

To develop customer relationships in the area, HJR Agri has appointed experienced salesman Carwyn Williams to cover the new territory.

“I’ve sold tractors, quads and parts in the area, so know the farms well, and was often in competition with HJR when I worked the patch for another tractor dealer,” says Mr Williams. “They’re very much on the button and pride themselves on the standard of after-sales service; when I’m negotiating with customers, it gives me confidence that if they take on a McCormick, they’ll get good back-up.”

The McCormick range has come on a lot since it returned to the agricultural scene 12 years ago, he adds: “With everything from compacts to heavy duty contractor power units it’s a very suitable product range for the farms in my area.”

Denbigh-based contractor D Vaughan & Son has become Carwyn Williams’ first McCormick customer, purchasing a 141hp MTX150 to join a fleet that tackles all manner of field work. The tractor clocked up 100hrs in the first 10 days with the crew and its main jobs will include square baling and buckraking on silage clamps.

“It’s a user-friendly tractor that you can put any driver on and in five minutes he’ll be away,” says Dylan Vaughan’s son Gethin. “You don’t have to spend an hour or two explaining complex controls.”