2024 is here!
Having taken some time to look back on 2023, I still can’t believe all the Takeuchi family was able to accomplish. The year ended on a high note when Akio Takeuchi, our founder and chairman of the board, was inducted into the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) Hall of Fame in recognition of his contributions to the equipment industry. This honor was well deserved, as Mr. Takeuchi invented the compact track loader and was the first to bring a 360-degree swivel compact excavator to North America.
In recognition of Mr. Takeuchi’s accomplishment, we established the Takeuchi 360ᴼ Dealer Award Program to honor our top-performing dealers. This program asks dealers to meet specific criteria in the areas of sales performance, facilities, training, marketing and parts and service support. Dealers who meet or exceed the program’s standards are recognized as Takeuchi 360ᴼ Dealers. You can check out the complete list of our award winners here.
Speaking of dealers, Takeuchi would not be where it is today without the help of our dealer partners. I would put our dealer network up against any in the equipment industry. Currently serving more than 280 locations in North America, these folks work tirelessly to support the Takeuchi brand and its customers. Whenever we ask them to step up, they make it happen. As a dealer group, they have already participated in a Takeuchi sales school here in Georgia and our national Dealer Summit in San Antonio, TX this year. During the sales school they learned about the many benefits of Takeuchi products and how we outperform the competition.
At the Dealer Summit, we discussed new ways to market and support our products, current market conditions, sales programs and current inventory. It was a great time for dealers to share their 2023 successes as we previewed new machine releases in 2024, had breakout sessions to dive deeper into the business and then watched Toshiya Takeuchi, our president, present the Takeuchi 360ᴼ Dealer Awards. It was a great two days to reconnect with one another and look ahead with excitement at the remainder of 2024.
2024 has started off with a bang for Takeuchi, with increases in market share, greater demand for machines and parts and an optimistic outlook. We’ll be adding even more outstanding new dealers to better support our customers throughout North America. I’m confident these new dealers will quickly prove themselves as valuable members of the Takeuchi family.
Takeuchi will have more machines available this year as our investments in manufacturing continue to pay off. We’re also introducing several exciting new products later in 2024. Our parts inventory has greatly improved, so parts order fill rates should increase and stabilize. Overall, Takeuchi is looking at another great year in 2024.
If you haven’t visited your local Takeuchi dealer in a while, I encourage you to stop by and see what’s new. As always, we appreciate everyone who is a member of the Takeuchi family, and we look forward to helping you with your equipment and service needs throughout the year ahead
Jeff Stewart