John Deere Sub-Saharan Africa: Taking on New Territories

John Deere’s arrival in South Africa is one of the happiest accidents in the country’s history. In 1878, two Prairie Queen walking plows from a foundered ship were recovered and sold at auction to George Knott of Botha’s Post, Victoria East, South Africa.  

Its equipment introduced to the country through pure serendipity, John Deere eventually established a firm outpost in Africa some 40 years later, positioning it as one of the few U.S. companies doing business in South Africa at the time.  

Today, it has nearly 150 employees in Africa, as well as offices in Kenya and Ghana, complementing the company’s sales branch and Regional Parts Distribution Center in South Africa. 

“John Deere is a world leader in providing advanced products, technology and services for customers whose work is revolutionising agriculture and construction,” the company outlines, “those who cultivate, harvest, transform, enrich and build upon the land to meet the world’s increasing need for food, fuel, shelter and infrastructure.” 

WORLD-BEATING AGRI TECH 

John Deere needs no introduction in the agri world, and certainly not in Africa. Its credentials have been carefully honed and forged over 180 years of innovation and progress, and its tractors have been running for more than a century. “Extraordinary global talent has helped us rank among the world’s best brands, most ethical companies, and greatest innovation leaders,” the company outlines.  

“Farmers and technology have always been partners. We want to elevate that,” adds Margaux Ascherl, Autonomy Program Delivery Manager.  

Jacques Taylor, John Deere’s Managing Director for sub-Saharan Africa sees the region as farming’s final frontier, pointing to one key statistic: the continent is home to 60% of the global total of uncultivated, arable land, meaning that of the world’s available farmland, six out of every 10 hectares sits in SSA. 

According to Taylor, the SSA market is split into, “small pockets of large agriculture and large pockets of small agriculture,” and key to both John Deere’s growth and overall agricultural progress is to provide technology which is adaptable to a range of situations and settings.  

The aim is always the same: helping people to farm bigger and better. “Our expertise is not just iron anymore,” states Jaco Beyers, Managing Director Africa Middle East, “we are delivering agronomic solutions backed by ground-breaking technology.” 

Last year, the world’s leading farm equipment maker kitted out its tractors with technology from start-up Hello Tractor, allowing farmers to hail the machines via an app and monitor the vehicles’ movements.  

It is hoped that teaming up with the so-called ‘Uber of tractors’ will boost sales of its famous green and yellow machines on a continent with the world’s highest poverty rate and the least mechanised agricultural sector. “We would like to see that every farmer has access to mechanisation,” Taylor told Reuters. “The gap that we’ve identified is, how do we connect small farmers with tractor owners?”  

Such opportunities exist in markets across Africa, says Hello Tractor founder Jehiel Oliver, but companies like Deere have lacked the tools to develop them. “Nigeria alone needs 750,000 (more) tractors to be on the global average,” he said. “Our technology is a market-maker for tractor manufacturers who want to sell into those markets.”  

MD CHANGE  

We learned in October 2020 of a change in Managing Director for John Deere’s Marketing & Sales branch head office in South Africa, with Jaco Beyers appointment geared largely toward supporting dealers in growing customer productivity and profitability by leveraging the John Deere Smart Industrial strategy.  

Smart Industrial focuses on both technology and equipment to help customers unlock profit at all levels of mechanisation.  

“John Deere has been doing business in Africa for over 140 years and we are committed to the region,” said Jason Brantley, Director for Region 1 A&T Sales & Marketing at John Deere.  

“We are excited about the growing trends of mechanisation and technology adoption that we are seeing in Africa and the Middle East as more and more customers are experiencing the John Deere Edge in terms of value, reliability, dealer support and productivity that helps customers profitably grow their businesses.” 

Having joined the company in 2004 as a Trainee Territory Manager in South Africa, Beyers will lead the company forward in the implementation, integration, and expansion of the Agricultural, Construction and Forestry (C&F) Division into the Ag and Turf channel for the African continent. 

“It is not the strongest who survive, nor the smartest, but those most responsive to change,” Beyers opens up. “For more than 180 years, John Deere has benefited from strong, decisive leaders who are dedicated to the company’s core values and I intend to ensure our values remain active and relevant.”  

“How we do business is critical to our continued success,” he concluded. 

AFRICA CONSTRUCTION EXPANSION 

John Deere announced in April its plans to conquer new territories across southern and western Africa, offering its construction line-up to 18 countries where Deere-branded products were not previously available.  

In welcome news for the industry, the company now looks to transfer the skills and expertise which have made it the agricultural dominant force to construction via its range of backhoe loaders, excavators, wheel loaders, motor graders and crawler dozers, sold and supported by independent, newly appointed John Deere dealers in countries including South Africa, Botswana, Tanzania and Sudan.  

“This expansion provides an opportunity for us to increase our global footprint in the construction industry, as we build upon our existing presence in Africa and deliver our product portfolio under the John Deere brand for the first time to these key markets,” explains Jaco Beyers.  

“As we move into these new countries, we are delivering on what customers expect from the John Deere brand, from the legendary product quality and performance to the exceptional customer support and equipment technologies that we are known for around the world.”  

John Deere is an increasingly prominent player in the construction and forestry industries in many parts of Africa, and now the legendary products will be available to customers in these territories alongside the support of the brand’s world-renowned dealer network. 

“We have a deep-rooted presence in Africa in the agriculture market, and we know construction customers in these markets are eager for access to the John Deere brand and its many advantages”, rounds off Griffiths Makgate, sales manager, John Deere Construction & Forestry, John Deere Africa Middle East.  

“By providing access to our high-quality equipment, outstanding dealer network and parts availability, and productivity enhancing technology solutions, we can help operators in Africa increase productivity and boost their bottom lines on a daily basis.”