Trust is a big thing in any relationship, that goes to another level when it comes to relying on a business partner to keep the wheels turning — literally.
That’s what Stuart Joyce has managed to do with his K2 Industrial Supplies business, in conjunction with his long-established Kyabram Bearings & Industrial Supplies and his newest acquisiton, Ag-Parts Echuca.
Stuart and his team have had an 11-year presence in Echuca and 25 years in Kyabram.
“We are a pretty diverse business,” he said.
“We cater for the farmer, the tradesman, commercial builders and the industrial food manufacturing space.
“We opened in Echuca because we deal with a lot of major players up here.”
Tongala abattoir giant, HW Greenham and Sons, has spent that entire two and half decades working with the business.
“We opened up when they were building the bull plant in Tongala. That relationship has stood the test of time,” Stuart said.
Along with Kagome Foods and pretty much all of the district’s machinery dealerships, Stuart’s business network has far-reaching tentacles.
“We supply the parts to these clients,” he said.
“It’s an avenue for them to attain spare parts.
“Over the years we have probably developed into four or five special shops in one.
“It might be an Individual client looking for a specific bolt, to a big business wanting hundreds of bearings at a time.”
Christmas, which correlates to harvest time, is a boom period for K2 and the doors will only be closed on public holidays.
“We are a service industry, we are pretty much on call 24-7 at this time of year,” Stuart said.
And despite the challenges of COVID-19, Stuart and his team have managed to satisfy just about every order that has come across the desk
“That’s largely due to our large stock holding,” he said.
“There are a lot of things that are hard to get, which means an extended wait time.
“We have a lot of parts on hand.”
There are five staff at K2, six at the Kyabram location and another seven at Ag Parts.
“I’d like to thank our staff for their work, along with all our customers for patronage and patience during the last couple of years,” Stuart said.