Crawford Agri Services Limited was an agricultural contracting service providing silage and tillage services in the Golden Bay region based in Takaka. JFC investments Limited was an investment company who owned the machinery operated by Crawford Agri Services Limited. Both companies were placed into liquidation on the 28th of December 2019 with the appointment of Geoff Falloon of Biz Rescue Limited, Nelson. Skylarc prepared a proposal and was awarded the task of organising and selling the assets of the company. The assets consisted of silage harvesters, late model tractors, heavy duty tillage equipment and hay making machinery.
The Challenge
Crawford Agri Services were based in a yard 7km outside of Takaka township. The majority of the assets were located at the yard, however several high value assets were located in Nelson including one impounded by the courts and others were located on other farms around Takaka. Assets were also generally in poor condition with a lack of maintenance and many being non operational despite being late model high value machines. The yard was also located on an operational farm.
The Process
Skylarc organised the recovery of all assets back to the main yard in Takaka. A respected third party agricultural servicing company was organised to provide independent mechanical inspections on each machine to maximise the confidence of remote buyers. Repairs on machines where economically viable were organised. With machinery being located in one of New Zealand’s remotest locations, ensuring buyers outside of the area could buy machinery with confidence would be critical to the success of the auction. All machinery was groomed by Skylarc’s team to ensure it was presented to the highest possible standard. Each machine was then described, photographed and videoed in operation to show buyers that each machine functioned as it should. Nationwide freight options were provided on all machinery.
The auction was listed for 10 days finishing on Sunday 23rd of February, Sunday evening finishing provides the largest possible audience on Trade Me. Machines were reserved by the liquidator Geoff Falloon of Biz Rescue Limited with guidance from Skylarc’s team.
The Assets
The auction consisted of 83 lots with the highlights being:
2012 Claas Jaguar 950 Silage Harvester
2014 JCB Farmaster 418S Loader
2010 New Holland FR9060 Silage Harvester
2013 Fendt 716 SCR Tractor with Loader
2011 New Holland T7030 Tractor
2012 John Deere 6030 Tractor
2013 Kverneland Optima Precision Seed Drill
2015 RZ TXL 560.6 Multi Disc Cultivator
2015 AG DVi970 Offset Disc Harrow
2014 Kuhn HR 3504 Power Harrow
2014 Kuhn FC 3125 DF Front Cut Mower
2010 Massey Ferguson 2150 Cutter Medium Square Baler
Marketing
With a value in excess of a million dollars in machinery, ensuring that the farming and agricultural contracting community were aware of the auction and its contents nationwide would be key to maximising the return on these assets. A comprehensive marketing plan covering a wide range of printed and online media including farming and heavy vehicle sales publications. Local newspapers, online marketing via New Zealand’s largest farming magazines and a targeted Facebook marketing campaign.
Results
The first week of auctioning saw all except four assets sold in the first round online. Three assets were sold in the following week and the final asset sold by negotiation after the auction period. The auction had in excess of 2,122 individual New Zealanders watching the auction and 326 individual bidders. Machines were shipped nationwide by Skylarc to locations including Whangarei, Tauranga, Central Waikato, Hawkes Bay, Westland, South Canterbury and Invercargill.
