The Barnes family’s history of manufacturing farming and fencing equipment began in 1969 when Steve Barnes launched the ‘UFO Single’ Mower.
Due to its simplicity and durability, the UFO range of mowers became one of the most popular farm mowers in New Zealand history. In 1989, the Maxam mower range was born and led to the Barnes family selling two of their Manawatu farms to focus on manufacturing farm equipment.
The Barnes’s entered the Fencing industry when FencePro was purchased in 2009. At that time, FencePro was a small business, but one with innovative products and a desire to supply the New Zealand fencing industry with the best equipment. The attitude of innovation is what FencePro was founded on and has been continued by the Barnes family. Products like the RB800 180° Rotational base have enabled NZ farmers and fencing contractors to take their efficiency and capability to a new level.
Throughout the 2010s, the Barnes family continued to develop and manufacture the FencePro post driver range, leading to it becoming New Zealand’s No.1 post driver brand. These days, FencePro customers are looked after by Grant Barnes and long-time family friend, Tobi Currie.
In 2015, the family business changed names from Maxam Machinery to Farmgear Ltd with the vision to add more brands under the one ‘parent company’. This vision was realised in 2019 when Kinghitter and Hooper were added to the family of brands. Kinghitter was the first brand to introduce hydraulics into the post driver industry, which redefined post drivers as we know them today.
Whilst working on the family farm, Nick Barnes still clearly remembers; “The day Dad (Steve Barnes) came to the farm with a hydraulic top link to use on the banger – the farm manager and I thought we were made!” This would have been the case for many people when this new method was developed.
For over 45 years, Kinghitter has been known globally for its ‘tried and trusted post driver designs’ and continues to be a major player in the global post driver market. These days Kinghitter’s range of next-gen post drivers are exported all over the globe as farmers and fencing contractors seek to purchase quality NZ-made equipment.
The Barnes family business currently operates out of two Manufacturing facilities in Palmerston North and Feilding (Manawatu). The recent acquisition of Aitchison Seed drills and the continued manufacturing of Maxam, have enabled the business to be spread across multiple industries. This resilient business model is especially important in economically challenging times as it allows product development to continue and a high level of customer service to be achieved, even when other businesses are going to ground.
Steve Barnes’s three sons (Nick, Nathan & Grant) are still well involved in the running of the business. Nick in Operations, Nathan in Product Development and Grant in Sales. The third generation has been involved in the business for over 7 years, with Archie in Production, Jack in Sales, and Dallas in Marketing. The attitude of innovation and customer care which founded the business is still well engrained, with the company’s No.1 value being to “Put our customers front and centre”.
Working in a family business can have its challenges. One of these is maintaining a strong family relationship, especially when there are some tough decisions to be made. Being able to put aside disagreements and still be able to get together as a family is above all else. However, working together in a family business certainly has its benefits. Knowing each other so well enables us to have some robust conversations and draw on different people’s strengths to achieve outcomes that are best for our customers and the business.
As for the future, we will continue to innovate new products and improve our existing range, while providing the best customer service. These two principles are what the business was founded on, and have worked for the last 55 years. We don’t see that changing anytime soon. There are some very exciting projects in the pipeline, so keep an eye out!
Article written by Dallas Barnes
Published in WIRED issue 75/December 2024 by Fencing Contractors Association NZ
