By Staff Reporter
Renault South Africa has named Kelston Renault in Makhanda its Dealer of the Year in the Micro category. Kelston also won 2023 Group of the Year.
Kelston managing director Mike McNaughton said he was thrilled that the Makhanda dealership had been honoured as the town’s embattled municipality, and the adverse publicity it attracted, made for a particularly difficult trading environment. He commended Renault Makhanda’s management team and praised the service advisors and sales representatives, whom he described as the “heart of the dealership”.
Kelston is currently running a junior management programme for 13 staffers picked from various dealerships who are seen as having the potential to add value to the business in coming years.
The Group’s community-facing strategy in the province was working well, said McNaughton. “Buying a car or bakkie … is in many cases either the biggest or second biggest purchase a person makes. Our community-based sales model is based perhaps on a question of trust in both the salesperson and the brand. If something goes wrong, the dealership is right there to take responsibility,” he said.
