Based in Castlefinn, Co Donegal, Wauchope Agri Contracting is a family farming and agricultural contracting company. William Wauchope, who runs the business along with his father Robert and brother Kenneth, talks Irish Tractor & Agri magazine through how they have established a reputation which is second to none.
It was by accident rather than design that the Wauchope family originally got into the agri contracting game.
When Robert Wauchope’s eldest son Kenneth decided that he wasn’t go to return to school after completing his Inter-Cert exams, Robert, realising there wasn’t enough work to keep the two of them going on the family farm, decided to branch out into contracting.
“My brother Kenneth wasn’t going to finish school and the family farm wasn’t big enough,” William Wauchope recalled. “We have a family farm comprising of 140 acres, where we specialise mainly in barley, in Castlefinn, Dad went to an auction, bought some machinery and the business was set up from there.”
It has proven to be a stroke of good fortune because the family has never had any reason to regret setting up Wauchope Agri Contracting and they have a long list of happy customers who can vouch for their professionalism.
Through sheer dedication, they have grown the business from those modest beginnings and gradually built up an extensive fleet of tractors and associated machinery.
William joined the family business full-time after a year studying at Gurteen College in 1993/’94 and, registered as a limited company since January 2008, they are renowned for providing an unrivalled service and, equally as important, for their diligence and reliability.
Providing the full range of agricultural contracting, Wauchope Agri Contractors are available for tillage, ploughing, sowing, combining, spraying, round baling, slurrying and grass seeding, William, Kenneth and their two full-time employees have been kept busy in recent times.
Ireland’s adverse weather conditions often makes life difficult for agri contractors but in 2014 it was very much a case of making hay when the sun shone.
Wauchope Agri Contractors and their modern and efficient fleet of machinery were rarely idle and, to ensure customer satisfaction, they always strived to get the job done as quickly as possible. William is hoping for more of the same in the months ahead.
“Last year was very good from a business point of view,” William pointed out. “There was exceptional growth due to the unusually good weather. That was, of course, a big factor and, as a result, the round baling picked up.
“We have two full-time employees working alongside myself and Kenneth but we would have up to six more working for us at peak times. We are also firm believers in keeping our tractors and machinery well maintained, ensuring they are reliable and durable.
“It’s not easy work, you have to have a good interest in it but we’re passionate about what we do and that is reflected in the jobs we do. It also goes without saying that you have to provide your customers with value for money.”
Locally, farmers and land owners no they can trust the Wauchope family to get the job done. That’s why they have survived the test of time while others have fallen by the wayside.
“We’re based on the border and do a lot of work in north Donegal and Tyrone, within a 15 mile radius of Castlefinn. We’re lucky in that over the years we have built up a long list of loyal customers who call on us for a lot of repeat business with us. It would be very rare that we would have lost a customer.
“We pride ourselves on providing an efficient service and when the weather allows we would be out working 24/7. My father has always told us never be afraid to try new ventures. Reliability is a big thing in this game and locally we’re hard to beat.”
Looking ahead to what the future may hold in store, William is committed to consolidating the business.
“The two big challenges are the weather and competition. They were always new people setting up in agri contracting but, in our experience, once you keep your customers happy then you will be okay.
“If a fella calls us up, gives us a day and a time, we’ll be there. We’re very happy with how the business has been going lately and, hopefully, that will continue going forward.”
Growing their customer base on the back of the quality of their work is the best way forward. Give William a call to find out how they can make life that little bit easier for you.
Wauchope Agri Contractors
Castlefinn
Co Donegal
Taken from Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 3 No 2, March 2015
