“We believe that farmers and other customers working in the farming space would prefer to buy their equipment, spares and related accessories from a ‘one-stop shop’ such as the one we own in Cradock,” says Jean Nel. “It is also here at Landmeg Landini that customers have access to the full range of Bell and JCB Agricultural and Forestry products.”

Jean and his older brother, Rudi, are two of four business partners who own Landmeg Landini, a business that essentially focuses on farmers and customers working within agriculture and related fields. Both brothers have tertiary qualifications in agricultural management from Saasveld Agricultural College in George, which has enhanced the grounding and love of the land they had received from their parents who farmed near Coligny in the North West Province.

“Rudi and I had both worked in different agricultural fields before embarking on being partners in Landmeg Landini,” Jean says. “Rudi had owned his own company, Rudi Nel Trading, which sold used agricultural tractors and implements, and I was the Area Manager for the Northern, Eastern and Western Cape for a division of Illovo Sugar that sold chemicals derived from the sugar industry before I had a stint in citrus farming and selling agricultural equipment.”

In 2016 the Nel brothers were approached by Riaan Pretorius, owner of Lezmin Landini in Kirkwood and Kenneth Thatcher, the owner of Sun Valley Transport also in Kirkwood, to see whether they would be interested in a business partnership to distribute the well-known Landini agricultural tractor range and other branded implements. Research had shown that opportunities for two such dealerships existed in Humansdorp and Cradock respectively and Landmeg Landini was subsequently launched in these two towns.

“Rudi is acting as General Manager and oversees our workshops and personnel of both branches and I look after marketing and sales,” Jean explains. “Here in Cradock we have a small but dedicated team who are passionate about what they do.”

The Cradock team is headed up by Pieter Williams, the Branch Manager and he is assisted by Hannelie Ferreira in accounts, Curwin Bishop in parts and  Mechanics Gerrie Pienaar and Henk Human in the workshop who mentor their apprentice, Gerrit van der Colff.

According to Jean, farmers in the Cradock area cultivate mainly cash crops, maize, lucerne and wheat, and have dairy herds. Many bale their own winter feed, with the handling of large bales into storage and loading onto trucks always a challenge.

“This is where I believe the JCB range of Loadalls is going to come into its own and fill a distinct gap with no less than four machine models,” Jean says. “The same can be said for the JCB Backhoe Loader range. I know of farmers who, once they have either of these machines, are adamant that they don’t know how they had survived without them.”

Jean foresees the JCB Backhoe Loader range selling well with it always being available to comfortably handle a myriad of tasks on any commercial farm, from building and maintaining farm roads, culverts and drainage to clearing irrigation system and digging trenches. Owning such a machine negates the risk of getting a similar or older pre-owned machine, which may at times be unreliable.

“We’re excited at the prospect of now selling and servicing both our mainstay Landini agricultural tractor and other implement ranges coupled with the renowned Bell and JCB ranges of agriculture and forestry equipment and we’re confident our niche market will be enhanced by the ‘one-stop shop’ concept,” he says. “We firmly believe that superior aftersales service is what sells the next piece of equipment and our personnel have bought into this philosophy as well.”

Landmeg Landini prides itself on the fact that no matter what time of the day or night a customer calls for emergency repairs, their rate stays the same with no additional charges levied on after-hours work.

Jean is also proud of his company’s outreach programme where they regularly visit the well-known Marlowe Agricultural High School in Cradock to demonstrate to the learners the practical methods of calibrating planters and fertiliser sprayers, and how to set up other implements that enhance precision farming methods.

Jean Nel (left) Director of Landmeg Landini with Pieter Williams, the Cradock Branch Manager.