A good, solid business relationship and great service from ABSA saw Suzuki Zululand scooping up a Golden Partner Award.
The dealer won this award from the bank in the Franchised Small category earlier this year, and it was more recently also awarded Platinum dealer status by Suzuki.
Dealerfloor had a chat with Roland Witthoft, Dealer Principal of the Suzuki Zululand as well as the Chery and Haval dealerships in Richards Bay on the KwaZulu-Natal north coast.
Roland and his brother, Dieter, are the owners and directors of the East Motor Group with seven dealerships in total. The dealerships include Toyota and Ford in Eshowe and another Suzuki and Chery dealership in Salt Rock.
“My brother started out with the Toyota dealership in 2001, and I joined when the Suzuki dealership was added to the portfolio. We have been in the used and new car business for many years and have built up a good reputation.
“Except for the addition of new personnel, my original staff members when we started with Suzuki are still with us, and we boast very good teams at all our dealerships,” says Roland.
“Yes we are honoured with the awards, and some of our other dealerships have also won various awards over the years. We are a family business and believe to be hands-on in all respects. We put great emphasis on personal service, and customer care is an absolute priority for us,” Roland tells us.
Asked about the obstacles the motor retail business faces today and especially in KwaZulu-Natal, Roland says although the floods and unrest in the province had a serious effect on business conditions, they were fortunately spared physical harm and damage.
“We are glad to see an improvement in stock availability across the spectrum. On the Suzuki side, we are privileged that the manufacturer could deliver a good stock supply even during the more difficult times. It did not only help at dealership level, but also put the brand on the podium in terms of overall sales and market share in the country.
“The Suzuki range starts at real entry level models, and a wide variety of offerings are really doing great while our Chinese brands like Chery and Haval are also shining in the market segment in which they do battle. And it is no surprise that in the more rural and agricultural settings of Eshowe, our Ford and Toyota dealerships’ pick-up range is immensely popular,” he says.
And what does the future hold in terms of expansion? “I think where we are, the market is saturated, but in Salt Rock there is room for growing our footprint, and we look at numerous possibilities,” Roland concludes.
Cars.co.za will unveil its first Industry Report at DealerCon 2025 – a landmark event designed to analyse the past decade of seismic change in the motor industry and project what lies ahead.
For decades, buying a car has been as much about emotion as practicality. Shiny brochures, polished showroom floors and persuasive sales talk often overshadowed the cold, hard numbers of ownership. But today, where information is currency, consumers are no longer satisfied with glossy marketing – they want data, and they want it now.
According to a Reuters report, South Africa is engaged in discussions with Chinese automotive manufacturers to encourage local investment, with at least one company showing considerable interest in establishing production facilities in the country, a senior government official revealed on Wednesday.
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Human beings have an innate inner drive to be autonomous, self-determined, and connected to one another. And when that drive is liberated, people achieve more and live richer lives.
Daniel Pink
The stories shared at the 2025 Tata Dealer Conference in South Africa, weren’t just tales of sales success. They were case studies in how local business development happens when a network is built on mentorship, innovation and long-term commitment and partnerships.
DFSK hit the road in the Eastern Cape recently with the official opening of the East London DFSK dealership on 6 September.
Chery had a busy time over the last couple of weeks. Not only did it pull off a unique crash test with two Chery Tiggo 9s, the first of its kind locally, but it also awarded its top performing dealers during its national dealer conference held at Nasrec.
