An established Isle of Wight business, with dealerships for leading brands of a range of machinery including Kubota, Merlo, Toro, and others, celebrates its 40th anniversary this year.
Founded in 1983, Stubbings Bros specialises in servicing, selling and hiring a wide range of equipment from lawnmowers and woodchippers through to mini-diggers, tractors and telehandlers. At the helm of the company is founder and Managing Director Andy Stubbings, who believes a combination of providing reliable machinery, backed-up with excellent customer service, is the key to its success.
His brothers, Si and Tim, joined the company early on its development and now Andy’s sons Matthew and Luke will – in time – ultimately be the future of the business. “We are well established now – with a great customer base – but when you first start-out and are pushing into new markets, it takes a few years until people recognise you, it’s tough and costs a lot.
During the early development years of the business, Andy was keen to build a relationship with Kubota. He secured the first such franchise in 1995, picking up one for groundscare. Next in his sights was the Kubota construction franchise, but the opportunity did not arise until five years later. Finally, the company also gained the agricultural franchise to become a full line Kubota dealership.
He says: “Kubota is a quality product. The Japanese are methodical, and their engineering is very good. Their products are incredibly well made and reliable – a Kubota engine never dies! The reliability of these machines is legendary and that is why their trade-in values are so good. It’s no wonder Kubota has been the market leader in the UK for mini-excavators over the past 25 years.
“We employ a team of 11 who have established a very personal connection with our customers and would never leave them in the lurch – always going the extra mile to help. Our workshop facilities are staffed by experienced factory trained technicians, who are qualified to maintain and service all the machinery that we sell.”
Stubbings Bros also carries out repairs to most makes of machinery, as well as hiring a range of new, or pre-owned utility vehicles, ride-on mowers, tractors etc on both a short and long-term basis.
Andy said: “We hire Kubota equipment so you can be assured of the very best in quality and reliability. All our hire machines are well maintained in good condition to look the best on your site.”
The company also has a thriving parts division able to offer a wide variety of spares carried in stock, as well as from an established network of suppliers.
If past successes are anything to go by, then the future looks bright for Stubbings Bros, a company built on integrity and always focused on the needs of its customers!