Price Turfcare, the UK and Ireland distributor of the Ventrac multi-implement, all-terrain compact tractor, returned from a successful BTME with an additional accolade after being named European Distributor of the Year and receiving Ventrac’s Platinum Award for Sales Achievement.
Commenting after presenting the award, Tyler Dickie, Ventrac’s International Sales Manager said,
“The effort that Rupert Price and his small team put into generating new business in the UK and Ireland is phenomenal. Since the formation of the business just 6 years ago, they have seen year-on-year increases in sales and they are our flagship European dealer. If I could clone their business model I would, but I also know that their success is down to the incredible drive and determination from the top downwards. They thoroughly deserve this recognition.”
Also visiting from Ventrac’s headquarters in Ohio, USA was Isaac Roth, the company’s Marketing Director.
“The Price Turfcare team did a fantastic job of producing an eye-catching stand at BTME and an innovative way of presenting our unique products,” he said. “They also organised a product review seminar with leading landscape and golf course professionals to help us understand the different environmental conditions and the requirement for specialist equipment here in Europe.
“Price Turfcare is a case study in how to launch a brand. Just six years ago our products were unknown in the UK, but with a defined marketing strategy, dedication and hard work Ventrac is now a recognised, established and respected brand over here. It has been a fantastic visit and I have learned so much in a short timespan.”
The Mere Golf Resort & Spa in Knutsford, Cheshire, has joined an ever-burgeoning list of sports and leisure organisations that have purchased a Ventrac all-terrain compact tractor and selection of attachments. Supplied by local dealer, Cheshire Turf Machinery, the attachments include a Contour deck, a Stump grinder and Turbine blower.
The 18-hole, 6,882 -yard, par-71 course at The Mere was designed by James Braid, and created out of 150 acres of Cheshire parkland in 1934. Today, the Championship course holds the reputation as one of the best maintained and highest quality golf courses in the North of England.
John Quinn, a native of Donegal in Ireland, has been the Course Manager for the past 4 years, after joining the prestigious resort’s greenkeeping team seven years ago. He leads a team of 10 comprising of 8 greenkeepers and two full-time gardeners.
Commenting on the Ventrac he said,
“We are a destination resort and we pride ourselves with the visual appearance of the property and the immaculate presentation of the golf course. This Ventrac is probably the best innovation in course maintenance in the past 20 years. It will go almost anywhere and its versatility is unparalleled. It’s great in wet areas and ticks all the boxes from a health and safety point of view.
“What other machine allows you to switch out a mowing deck and attach a stump grinder, then switch again to blowing leaves? It’s an adaptable piece of equipment with an ingenious coupling system that lets you change implements in just about a minute. The eight wheels gives it a low centre of gravity, which makes it very safe on slopes, especially around tee banks and bunker surrounds.
“It’s up there with the best machines I used. It’s just a case of getting to know its capability and getting the confidence to go where no other ride-on can go. It helps us to maintain difficult areas on a regular basis and has certainly enhanced the presentation of the course.”
John Quinn began his career at his local course in Portnoo, with an initial six-week placement that lasted four years. To further his career, he spent two years in full-time education at Elmwood college achieving an HNC and HND in golf course management as well as work placements in Sweden. He then joined Linden Hall Hotel, Golf & Spa in Northumberland and three years later migrated south to take up the position of deputy head greenkeeper at Caversham Heath near Reading. Five years on, he then moved to Davenport Golf Club in Cheshire, before taking up his latest position in 2015.
