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lawn & garden
                                                        Steelfort MD John McOviney says he still very much enjoys his involvement in the direction of the company.
Happy to be part of what he believes to be the only remaining New Zealand-owned lawn mower maker, John says firmly that he has “no intention of changing that position.
“We are a family-based company. And that’s the way I like it.”
John also talks candidly of the difficult decision to move lawn mower manufacturing offshore, to China: “That change was a big step. And I probably pontificated for a couple, two or three years. But sometimes, you have to make hard decisions.”
Has this move come back to haunt Steelfort, given the current troubles with freight and supply chain?
Apparently not: “We’ve had a good association with the company we deal with in Shanghai for probably 10 years now.
“And they’re a good company. They’re honest and reliable,” says the Steelfort MD.
By the sound of it, Steelfort is actively looking for more such long term, personal manufacturing relationships.
Indeed, you can expect to see more outdoor power products bearing the LawnMaster brand, now in its 75th year no less, says Gavin Lowndes.
Having spent lockdown last year rationalising some of the high volume but low-margin brands Steelfort distributed but didn’t own, says Gavin, it was time to make more of the company’s own LawnMaster brand.
“Now we focus on what we’re good at and what we understand,” he says plainly. “And that’s made a huge difference to the company.
“Steelfort’s big focus moving forward is the LawnMaster brand and where we can take it.
“We’ve gained huge market share in the petrol lawn mower business in the last few years, and while we wouldn’t say we’re number one, we are certainly right up there now.”
So we can expect further extensions to the LawnMaster outdoor power tool range, which already includes trimmers, water blasters and log splitters, as long as the product meets strict quality criteria.
Possible future additions to the LawnMaster catalogue will certainly include more handheld product, and could even extend to generators, says Gavin Lowndes.
“The key criteria are can it can meet a level of quality that we’re happy to put our name on, that we’re dealing with a reputable company that that aligns with us and that the product has long term viability.”
https://steelfort.co.nz/
GARDENA’s NEW Wall-mounted hose box 35m XL, for large gardens.
GARDENA GOES REMOTE AND LARGE
New for spring/summer 2021, the GARDENA Bluetooth App allows easy control of GARDENA’s SILENO City 250 and Life 750 robotic lawnmowers from up to 10 metres away.
The GARDENA Bluetooth App is free to download for both iOS and Android and can be used with existing SILENO robotic lawnmower as well as newly purchased models.
Configuration and setup are straightforward, and once done the app offers a new level of convenient, quick and simple control of the robotic mower.
You can see the mower’s status, reset the mowing schedule, set the SensorControl or Spot cutting functions, enable a secondary mowing area or send the mower back to its charging station, all from your phone or tablet.
Also new from GARDENA is the Wall-mounted hose box 35m XL, for large gardens. The product features all the reliable, high-quality features that are critical to an excellent performance including integrated hose reel for neat, even retraction without tangling, knotting, or twisting, RollControl technology for safe and controlled hose retraction and short locking points for just the right amount of hose in use.
The new XL 35m also offers security and theft protection with the ability to fit a standard padlock (not attached) to the high- quality UV and frost-proof hose box.
The wall bracket allows 180° swivel for wide garden watering and practical against-wall storage and, like all GARDENA hoses, the 35m length of 13mm hose is non-toxic and phthalate-free, for peace of mind watering and when eating your own produce!
All connection parts and spray nozzle are included, so the product is ready to wall-mount and use straight out of the box.
Available from October, with a 5-year warranty.
www.gardena.com/nz/
 MORE AT www.facebook.com/nzhardwarejournal
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