A MESSAGE FROM OUR MD JANDRÉ This might be a tumultuous time in an unforgiving market, but one day, we will look back upon all this and remember how we overcame all the challenges and emerged stronger, just like before, when we started small back in 2016. In the beginning, we still shared desks in Fourways, trying to figure out what products to offer here that would offer the greatest benefits to the country’s farmers. We worked extremely hard to establish our company; in fact, our TMs were driving from one farm gate to the next to ask if they could come in for a chat. Those were tough but exciting times! JANDRÉ VAN DER WESTHUIZEN Director <strong>Timac</strong> Agro South Africa As you know, there have been changes in top management and this might have raised questions and caused concern about what the future of <strong>Timac</strong> AGRO South Africa holds and how it will affect you. As I said at this year’s kick-off, we need to refocus our efforts – and this includes reducing costs. Groupe Roullier’s policy is that a Groupe Roullier representative should establish a subsidiary in a country and then hand over leadership to an experienced leader within the company who is from that country – hence the change in management. This was the first step to get our local subsidiary to become independent from the group; the next step will be to become financially independent. We must now stand on our own two feet and to do this, the company has had to make some sacrifices. Unfortunately, we had to withdraw from two of our regions due to cost pressures, despite my best efforts to avoid it. We had to do it in the interest of our company’s future and sustainability. This may appear to be a drastic measure implemented by Groupe Roullier, but it was unavoidable and serves to demonstrate how tough the market is and how important it is to ensure that our company has a sustainable business model that can take us into the future. We are committed to South Africa and determined to demonstrate to Groupe Roullier that these sacrifices were not made in vain, but will make us leaner and stronger, ready to meet any challenge. We had to answer many difficult questions too, like where are we going with our company and how we are going to change the market. What could we offer the farmer that would change the way they view the traditional fertilisers to which they have become accustomed? We grew from those humble beginnings to where we are today, and I believe that, with a combined effort from all of us, we will achieve our independence and go from strength to strength. I want to thank every employee in the field for being our voice on the ground. Your hours on the road bring in the sales and help grow brand awareness. Without you, we would not be where we are today, and we would not have overcome every single challenge along the way. We would also like to thank our staff at Head Office for their devotion to the field staff and for always looking for ways to improve their turnaround times. They could never do it without you! <strong>2019</strong> kicked off in dramatic fashion and came with its own unique set of ups and downs, just like 2018 did. However, we should remember that, after every down, there is another up, and if we maintain our focus while we are down, the only way to go is up! This will also be true of <strong>2019</strong>, so let’s redouble our efforts and achieve greatness. It is just beyond our reach and we can already see it. We are better prepared than ever, because the downs make us strong and the ups remind us of where we came from – and that we can overcome all challenges. The sky is our only limit. So, let’s make <strong>2019</strong> about focus and that logo on your white golfer – a logo of a great company and your constant reminder of Olivier’s vision for the future and his commitment to get there, no matter how many mountains we must climb to achieve it. I want to challenge every <strong>Timac</strong> AGRO staff member to send selfies on the group for the next week of you wearing your “UP” kick-off shirt in the field. This will inspire your colleagues and energise us to reach our goal. I will give the winner of the best picture two brand-new <strong>Timac</strong>-branded shirts. Let’s keep up that UP! 2
TEAM TIMAC NEWS UPDATE 2018 FRANS VAN WYK Congratulations! You are the most Profitable TM OF 2018! DANIEL HATTINGH Congratulations! You are the BEST TM OF 2018! FRANCES ROOS Congratulations! You are the TOP RBD OF 2018! REGION THAT SOLD THE MOST TONS FREE STATE 3
Change language