The celebration of Kubota UK’s 40th anniversary last year allowed the manufacturer to look back and reflect on the company’s many successes and highlights. It’s fair to say that a lot has changed over the years within the industry, but even as Kubota’s UK presence has expanded, many of the company’s relationships, with both dealers and customers, have stood the test of time.
One such relationship is with Graham Stansfield, MD and founder of Kubota dealer Boss Plant Sales Ltd. Having started his career at Kubota over 30 years ago, he’s seen the company grow into the leading construction manufacturer it is today.
In 2012, Graham spotted a gap in the market and opened up his dealership to service Oxford, London and the Home Counties. Since then, Boss Plant Sales Ltd has increased its reputation alongside its customer base and tripled its staff. When it comes to construction machinery, the dealership has only ever sold Kubota excavators, with Graham citing its continuity and proven reliability as key factors behind this decision.
“Kubota’s machinery has proven itself time and time again over the years. So have the people at the company. They believed in Boss Plant when it was just five individuals, working out of a Portakabin, and they’ve stuck by my team ever since”, comments Graham. “Kubota puts great faith in its dealer network, recognising that their expertise lies in making the products and ours is selling them in a very competitive marketplace. After all, as dealers out in the field each day, we know our customers better.”
Kubota’s extended three-year warranty is included as standard on all their construction machinery. Graham remarked, “You get very few problems with Kubota machinery but if you do, the team there listen and take it seriously. Nothing else in the market comes close to Kubota’s product range; especially when you take into account total cost of ownership. It’s much easier to sell something you believe in. This is why we have seen so many customers continue to come back over the years.”
One long-term Boss Plant and Kubota customer is Roy Hawes of Hawes Plant and Tool Hire. Like Graham, he has a long history with Kubota machinery and was one of the first UK customers to buy a Kubota KH10 mini-excavator. Since then, he’s gone on to buy nearly 300 machines, recently purchasing an additional 20 machines to add to his fleet in late 2019.
“Back in the late ‘70s, Kubota was a much smaller brand, so when I purchased my first machine, I was taking a bit of a gamble. But it was a gamble that paid off tenfold. The machine was so efficient and reliable that I was able to complete jobs in record time. Since then, I’ve not looked back; only buying Kubota excavators for the last four decades.”
Nowadays Hawes Plant and Tool Hire is a successful family-owned and managed business, buying its Kubota machinery from Boss Plant Sales Ltd and servicing Buckinghamshire and the surrounding areas. Roy, now in his 70s, is still involved in the business on a day to day basis and makes the buying decisions.
When asked what keeps him coming back to Kubota, he said, “I believe in people and machinery. I need to deal with good people and if they can supply good machinery it makes the decision easy. Over the years, Graham has consistently delivered a high quality service and Kubota has continued to manufacture reliable machinery.”
In the last 40 years, Kubota has expanded and built a name for itself as the go-to manufacturer for mini-excavators in the UK market. It has also established a network of people who believe in its products and invest in its future. As the Kubota UK family continues to grow, these relationships are what makes the company unique and enable it to stand the test of time.
Glen Hampson, Business Development Manager – Construction at Kubota UK concluded; “At Kubota UK, we’re extremely proud of our relationships with our longstanding dealers and customers, like Boss Plant and Roy Hawes. It’s a testament to the quality of our machinery as well as the high level of service that we are constantly striving to achieve. The construction market has changed extensively since we first began our operations here in the UK and its only through maintaining a strong network of talented dealers and committed customers that we’ve been able to thrive over the years.”
