LLOYD LTD EXPANDS WITH BOBCAT

Carlisle-based Lloyd Ltd, the Bobcat dealer for County Durham, Teesside, Cumbria and Northumberland in England and the southern part of Scotland, covering South Ayrshire, the Border counties and Dumfries and Galloway, has expanded the services it provides for customers in the construction and hire markets - which they say has brought significant benefits for both themselves and Bobcat.

They say results have been especially impressive in product and aftermarket sales for the Bobcat range of compact loaders, compact excavators and attachments. As well as the construction and rental markets, the other main sectors for Lloyd are agriculture, groundcare and materials handling, where they say sales of Bobcat equipment have also increased.

This has been supported by Lloyd’s own finance team, with a wide choice of finance options available to suit different customers in the market. It is one of the advantages that arises from cross-fertilisation with the motor vehicle side of the Lloyd business, covering the same areas in the North of England and the South of Scotland.

Alistair Whitby, dealer principal at the Lloyd branch in Bishop Auckland, said, “The expansion in construction has delivered a 20% rise in Bobcat business. This is backed by similar increases in the number of finance packages we have sold. We are also investing heavily in our facilities and processes to ensure that it is even easier for new and existing Bobcat customers to do business with us. The Construction side is headed by our construction sales manager, Chris Stephenson, who runs out of Bishop Auckland and Newcastle.”

As well as building new premises for the Penrith branch, Lloyd say the construction expansion includes new investments in facilities together worth over £7 million, including refurbishment of the Carlisle, Newcastle and Kelso branches. The investment also includes a new facility Lloyd Ltd is planning opposite the current Bishop Auckland branch, where a new 2900 m2 building will be constructed on company-owned land that will offer an outstanding showroom, triple workshop area and a training centre. 

In the six years the company has been a Bobcat dealer, Lloyd has developed very close ties with Bobcat, with regular focus meetings with Paul Hyslop, the Bobcat District Manager UK North. The focus meetings explore every aspect of the Bobcat-Lloyd relationship, with a key discussion being customer focused actions to ensure the right customers are targeted with the right solutions and including forward planning on stocks of Bobcat products to help optimise lead times for customers. 

Paul Hyslop commented, “I have been very pleased with the strides taken over the last two years by Lloyd, which have provided a significant boost to Bobcat sales in the areas they cover. I was delighted that Bishop Auckland was able to host the recent 2018 Bobcat Customer Roadshow as it toured England and Scotland, providing a great Bobcat experience for existing and prospective customers alike.”