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WORDS BY ANITA BODY, IMAGES BY ANNIE STUDHOLME AND RURALCO

“I’ve had a total of 20 years in the business, spanning 25 years,” says the newly appointed On-Farm Sales Manager. It’s one of many roles he’s had during his three stints at the Ashburton based co-operative. 

Lester first joined the Ruralco team back in its ATS days in the late 1990s. Born and bred in Ashburton, he started as a retail salesperson on the shop floor before moving into one of the co operatives’ first field representative roles which were introduced in 2000. It was a time of growth and development for the business with the dairy boom just getting underway. 

“When I started as one of the first dairy representatives, there were only two of us. We dealt mainly with 50/50 sharemilkers. At the time a few dairy farmers had already come down here from the North Island and converted land to dairying. Then a few local farmers started converting and they often pulled in a 50/50 sharemilker who brought their expertise and livestock.” 

While Lester was put on the road predominantly to meet the needs of dairy farmers, he ended up calling on all farming sectors in Mid Canterbury. “It quickly became apparent there was no point contacting dairy farmers after 2.30pm because they would all be tied up with milking – they were all very hands-on farmers in those days. So, it meant I had time to visit other farmers around the district as well.” 

Lester left the co-op in 2003 to take up a role with Fort Dodge as the Cydectin rep covering the top of the South Island for the next four years. But he still kept close ties with Ruralco. “Some farmers didn’t think I had left as I was at every Instore Days and in the retail shop quite often.” 

He returned for six years, first as a shop Manager, and later as the Retail Manager, before embarking on another career journey, this time with Plains Irrigators. Once again, he wasn’t too far removed from Ruralco, and still based in Ashburton. 

He rejoined the co-op as the National Sales Manager working on growing Ruralco’s merchant base. When the co-op was in partnership with Ravensdown, there was a concerted effort to grow the number of merchants nationwide. Lester’s role saw him work with a number of national merchants, often with head offices out of town. That nationwide push has been scaled back over recent years but nurturing merchant relationships is still an important part of the business and Lester is proud to have been part of its growth. 

While sad to be leaving a role he held for 10 years, Lester is excited to be able to reconnect with local farmers again. The recent departure of former On-Farm Sales Manager, Andrew Mitchell who left to take up the role of Australia/ New Zealand Rumen Nutrition Sales Manager with CHR Hanson, created the perfect opportunity for a new challenge, and Lester took up the new role at the beginning of February. “I know our merchants are in great hands with Jason McKenzie and his team.” 

During his long tenure at Ruralco, Lester has seen many changes. “When I first started, we only had the Ashburton store, we used to be able to drive between Havelock and Burnett Streets, and the old Inwards Goods was the former McCandlish Motors site.” 

Outside of work, Lester is a keen mountain biker, having taken part in the Ruralco Longbeach Coastal Challenge numerous times. He and his wife Lisa, also spend a lot of time at Waikuku Beach (north of Christchurch) where Lester enjoys body boarding. Family is also important to the father of three and grandfather of five. 

Looking to the future, Lester says he’s excited to be reconnecting with lots of familiar faces. “There’s a lot of competition out there now compared to when I was doing this before.” He says excellent customer service is key in a competitive market. “Looking after our farmers is paramount as we look ahead.”

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