Award-winning Volvo EX90 coming to South Africa in 2025
Volvo’s flagship luxury SUV, the all-electric EX90, will join the local line-up in the first half of 2025.
- Product News
- 29 January 2025
For the tenth consecutive year, the Audi Group Dealer of the Year award was scooped up by the Hatfield Motor Group at the annual Silver Arrow Awards ceremony held by the manufacturer.
The Audi Franchise Director for the Hatfield Group, Karl Lessle, received the award on behalf of the three Audi dealerships in the group. The dealerships are Audi Centre Braamfontein (medium dealership), Audi Centre Rivonia (mega dealership) and Audi Centre Hatfield (mega dealership).
The criteria for the award include areas such as customer care and retention, profitability and sales success to mentioned but a few.
Dealerfloor spoke to Karl about this outstanding achievement by the Hatfield Group and asked him what the secret to their success is.
“First of all, our staff members are the foundation for our success. I believe in well-trained staff who are happy, committed and have career opportunities in our group. In return, our staff add value to our business rendering the best service possible to our customers. Between the three dealerships, we currently boast a staff complement of around 200 people.
“We put in a huge effort to establish an environment that ensures an extremely low staff turnover. This, in return, creates experts that deliver a first-class customer experience that leads to people coming back to us for business. Take our three Dealer Principals as an example – all three rose through the ranks from different positions and backgrounds in the group to where they are today.
“In short – staff retention ensures customer retention. Therefore our motto is Rated Number One in Service,” Karl tells Dealerfloor.
Karl, who originally comes from a finance and banking background, joined the motor retail business in 2002. In 2005, he joined the Hatfield Group and was tasked to establish the Audi dealership in Hatfield, and since 2011 they have been winning the much sought-after manufacturer’s award.
He concluded that notwithstanding the challenging times with COVID-19 and the now well-known stock shortages of new vehicles worldwide, they manage to keep their head above water and are today excelling in all aspects of the business.
The Hatfield Group is privately owned, and the two shareholders are Brad Kaftel and Joe Mthimunye. The business is also fully BEE2 compliant, and the involvement in disadvantaged communities is of utmost importance to them.
Volvo’s flagship luxury SUV, the all-electric EX90, will join the local line-up in the first half of 2025.
Africa's premier automotive aftermarket trade fair, Automechanika Johannesburg, will celebrate its landmark 10th edition at the Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand from 28-30 October this year, strategically coinciding with Transport Month.
Avura Motors, a car dealership trading as Avura Executive Auto, has been fined R100 000 by the National Consumer Tribunal.
Advertisement
Advertisement
You can't build a reputation on what you are going to do.
Henry Ford
New Year is over, but there were extended celebrations in the Cape after Hyundai N1 City was awarded the 2024 Dealer of the Year prize at Hyundai Automotive South Africa’s annual dealer conference at Sun City.
With more than two decades of experience in the automotive retail sector and 11 years in the banking sector, Riyaaz Slarmie, Dealer Principal at GWM and BYD in Woodmead, is a go-getter driven by a genuine passion for people and success.
A star is born, and he is in the Foton stable of CMH’s Randburg dealership. His name is Wayne Bull, big in stature, soft spoken with a passion for customers and his product.