Strongest Korean brand

[DK35vince]

Well in the 3 years I've had my Kioti its been back to the dealer once- to add the second remote.

I have had my Kioti DK for 13 years and its never been back to the dealer.
Its been an excellent tractor.

 

[murphy1244]

I have had my Kioti DK for 13 years and its never been back to the dealer.
Its been an excellent tractor.

Can i have a Amen??? Hope I do the same.

 

[K man]

I have had my Kioti DK for 13 years and its never been back to the dealer.
Its been an excellent tractor.

That is nice to hear that Kioti is a good brand for us newbies. If I can go 13 years without going back to the dealer I will be happy that I made the right choice. So far I am happy with my CK30 HST.

 

[Maka]

Well stated Grandad4.

It seems the first lesson about getting into the US tractor market is you have to have a solid, reliable product. Like most everyone else, the Korean manufacturers figured that out and seem to do that quite well. The other critical element is having a good means of reaching and supporting the market. Building a strong dealer network is hard and it takes time; even the big names make bad decisions about dealers occasionally. Every region is unique so you can't just do the same thing everywhere. That seems to be the thing that makes or breaks a tractor manufacturer, and the story is still playing out for some of the Korean brands.

If you're shopping for a tractor, most definitely look at the Korean brands along with everything else. If you're thinking of becoming a dealer, do your research. There will be winners and losers eventually, and it won't be because of product quality or the lack thereof.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

As a guy with the 44th tractor made in the NX series, and frequent buyer of bits, I can assure you that Kioti has been good about getting parts to me via direct drop ship.

 

[Maka]

Arnoldziffel, I see that. I know they are well built but in many areas the dealers are few and far between.

 

[Maka]

Eric, Kioti has great products and their commitment to the market is proven. I feel they are solid and will be in the U.S. market for a long time.

 

[Maka]

rge33, I am glad you are happy with your LS. I always felt they were one of the finest tractors available. Montana, McCormick, FarmTrac or LS. LS just builds a fine machine.

 

[Danny C]

rge33, I am glad you are happy with your LS. I always felt they were one of the finest tractors available. Montana, McCormick, FarmTrac or LS. LS just builds a fine machine.

Don't forget the NH tractors LS makes!

 

[Maka]

Duh, of course. Sorry about that.

Don't forget the NH tractors LS makes!

 

[GManBart]

I would like to check out Kioti and LS, but the nearest dealers are 100 or more miles away. It would not take many trips to them to eat up any cost difference, not to mention my time, having to go that far. My choices are basically green, orange or red.

Both times I was shopping for a CUT (first open station, then cab) the price difference between an LS or Kioti and Deere, Kubota or Massey was anywhere from $7500 to over $10K. That pays for more than a few 100mi trips.

 

[GManBart]

I think pretty much all the Korean companies mentioned make very nice machines that offer a good value. It seems that Kioti and LS have the most established dealer network, and supply chain (warehouses, etc), and make all their own machines. LS is having CNH make some of their larger machines for export, but I don't think any of those come to the U.S. With the other brands like Branson and TYM the challenge seems to be the dealer network and that's just luck of the draw. I thought Branson was sourcing machines from other companies, and while that doesn't mean the machines are bad, can sometimes cause problems down the road with parts availability (depending on who builds it, that may not be an issue).

 

[Maka]

GManBart, I agree and this is the first mention of TYM in the thread. I will be posting my thoughts in detail soon. One thing i dizagree with is luck of the draw. Good points by all posters.

 

[Maka]

My thoughts in a new thread.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...79-asssment-korean-tractor-manufacturers.html

 

[TomSeller]

Don't forget the NH tractors LS makes!

Yes, that gives LS a leg up in its service parts base. I have never been a fan of rebranded tractors, in the long run I think LS will service and sell much more direct and maybe phase out their relationship with NH.

If NH wants to be in that market segment, they should just have components made and assemble the final tractor themselves.

 

[MinnesotaEric]

Yes, that gives LS a leg up in its service parts base. I have never been a fan of rebranded tractors, in the long run I think LS will service and sell much more direct and maybe phase out their relationship with NH.

If NH wants to be in that market segment, they should just have components made and assemble the final tractor themselves.

In the face of decelerating sales (see PDF link), I'm told by my dealer (now in the top 20) that Kioti's sales have expanded this year along with their dealer and parts networks.

http://www.aem.org/AllDocuments/AEM/MI/Reports/14 11 USAG.pdf

 

[bigcut]

Yes, that gives LS a leg up in its service parts base. I have never been a fan of rebranded tractors, in the long run I think LS will service and sell much more direct and maybe phase out their relationship with NH.

If NH wants to be in that market segment, they should just have components made and assemble the final tractor themselves.

Tom,
I think you're onto something there. Interesting business strategy on LS's part. They do contract mfg. for others, i.e., NH which helps them defray their cost for capital expansion, OH, etc., probably selling at paper thin margins in the re-badging market. At the same time they enter the US market under their own brand name, with better margins taking the business direct, using re-badging as a cushion. In the meantime, if their smart, they start building their own infrastructure, i.e. dealers, territory reps., marketing, etc., with their sights set on building brand recognition, and the ability to command higher margins due to market acceptance (higher prices).

Contract mfg is a cut throat business, with the buyers having exceptional leverage over the mfg.

From my limited view of the world, LS's biggest weakness is their Dealer Network and brand recognition. As I shared with GMan, finding LS dealers is like a guarded secret. This is in sharp contrast to say Kioti. I used TSO's Kioti dealers locator and pulled up 5 locations in my area. I suspect this is to limit competitive bidding on the buyers part. Also that their network is probably pretty thin, as they're in the building process. I doubt that LS has 2 or more dealers in my area. I might be wrong. It's had to find out. Almost like a protected territory for their Dealers, whether that is intentional or just taking time in building the network. That's why I'm interested in what Maka knows about LS's network, since he was a dealer. Obviously what I've stated thus far is speculative thought on my part.

LG probably has guidelines that they issue to LS as return on invested capital, and probably charges a fee, similar to a bank. So, if they (LS) decide to mfg. their own engines, they have to do the ROI. They have a limited source of funds and no doubt LG requires accountability. So they have to spend their dollars wisely. They can wait till they get their volume direct numbers up high enough and then switch over to their own mfg, where they have more control and greater margin. Again speculation on my part.

I'm looking at this thru the prism of someone who, like you, is interested in tractors, their use, quality and affordability. But, I am also looking at this from the business strategy point of view, which is where my background is really stronger. I've tried to put myself in the place of LS and LG.

BTW, like others, I think the names are terrible, but if you were Korean, you'd probably think all English names are wacky, hence LS, LG, Kioti, etc. Asians can have a hard time in grasping certain words and the impression or meaning they convey.
Just my thoughts...interested in what the rest of you think. Makes for interesting reading & discussion.
John

 

[TomSeller]

Doesn't this site locate LS dealers accurately?

Find A Dealer « LS Tractor USA

 

[TomSeller]

I don't know the details as to why Yanmar and Deere split up, but I would speculate Yanmar thought they could build and sell the tractors more profitably themselves, given the extra layer of margin that Deere would add tomthe selling price. We all know that Deere had priced themselves (and Yanmar) out of being competitive. Yanmar was on the sidelines looking at not only Kubota, but more importantly LS, Kioti, Branson, TYM, etc taking market share. So why not get in the market directly?

The same could happen to Massey and Iseki.

 

[GManBart]

Doesn't this site locate LS dealers accurately?

Find A Dealer « LS Tractor USA

It does, but it seems to list only the closest dealer. You have to play around with the zip codes, or zoom in on the map to find others in the general area. Many other brands list the closest three or more dealers so you get a better picture of the local dealer network.