Fisher Motors remains positive FISHER Motors workers go through their duties in their factory in Bulawayo yesterday
FISHER Motors workers go through their duties in their factory in Bulawayo yesterday

FISHER Motors workers go through their duties in their factory in Bulawayo yesterday

Profile Business Editor
A business’ most valuable asset is its good name, its brand and reputation.
A company’s brand reputational value has four basic elements these are expectations, perceptions, business relationships and unique intellectual property assets.
Improved quality in each of those areas increases financial value for the organisation.
One such company that has managed to stay afloat despite the harsh economic conditions that keep stalking the country since the late 90s is Bulawayo-based engineering firm, Fisher Motors Engineering.

The company is one of the oldest engineering entities in the country having cut its teeth in 1959 and officially incorporated into a company by Robert Batty in 1965.
Fisher Motors is primarily an automotive engine reconditioning operation but also has lathe machines to carry out general engineering jobs.

The company is well-equipped with all the necessary machines required to completely overhaul from small car engines to large bus, freight carriers, tractor, industrial and earthmoving equipment combustion engines.

The company services customers in key sectors from the agricultural, mining, transport, tourism, manufacturing and motor trade industries.
Its latest proprietor, Abednico Bhebhe, took over the reins in 2009, at the time he was faced with a rather insurmountable task of rescuing a firm that was on the brink of collapse due to issues related to the meltdown of the country’s economy.

Faced with a situation where he had to ward off the societal misconception that indigenous entrepreneurs have a tendency of running down companies which they took over, Bhebhe had to put all his business management skills to test.

In an interview this week, Bhebhe said prior to the takeover, Fisher Motors was on the verge of collapse but managed to steer away from troubled waters after its new management embarked on a successful turnaround strategy.

The company’s debt had ballooned close to $1 million due to non-payment of bills to service providers, medical aid and taxes to the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority.
“Six years ago, this company was on the verge of closing. It had accrued a debt of $900,000 and we managed to reduce that to only $11,000 as of last year and the figure is still around that to date.

“However, due to the poor performance of our feeder sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing and mining, we are faced with a situation whereby we might find it difficult to liquidate the remaining debt,” Bhebhe said.

He said there was a need for government to come up with various programmes to resuscitate the agriculture and mining sectors as these are the mainstay of the country’s economy from which the automotive industry also derives its jobs.

The automotive industry includes a wide range of companies and organisations involved in the design, development, manufacture, marketing, and selling of motor vehicles.

It is one of the world’s most important economic sectors by revenue. The automotive industry does not include industries dedicated to the maintenance of automobiles following delivery to the end-user, such as automobile repair shops and motor fuel filling stations.

“As an industry, collectively we are not doing very well and this includes Fisher Motors. You will find that a lot of companies are applying for exemption as they can’t make any salary increments. Some are downsizing while others are cutting working hours. However, since I took over Fisher Motors, there were 27 employees now there are 21.

“At the moment we are operating at a break-even point but we are not contemplating retrenching, the reason being we are concerned about the welfare of our employees and their families and we only hope the economy will rebound with the sectors, which are our feeders, spearheading it so that we are assured of jobs,” Bhebhe said.

He said there was a need for the government to provide the agricultural sector with durable machinery upon which the automotive firms can get jobs from stating that improved productivity on the farming front would cascade to the manufacturing industry from, which the automotive industry derives most of its jobs.

“As the situation stands there are a few farmers in the country that are using tractors with reputable brands that can be easily repaired or reconditioned. Instead there is now an influx of tractors from the Asian market whose back-up spares are scarce. The government also used to own a number of earthmovers but now it relies on hiring, meaning we have few jobs,” Bhebhe said.

The country’s automotive industry is left to grapple for the few jobs exerted by the mining industry.
Despite the stagnant economic activity, Fisher Motors remains optimistic and has set sights at spreading its tentacles to Hwange, Harare, Mutare and Beitbridge, even exploring the huge investment opportunities which exist in neighbouring Botswana.

“We will not hesitate to spread to areas like Hwange because it has a catchment of people that are doing fishing, tourism and mining obviously there is lot of machinery there. Once we have a branch in Beitbridge, we can afford to cross to Limpopo where there is a lot of farming activities.

“If we are in Beitbridge, we will also enjoy a clientele base from mining companies in Gwanda as well. We will also spread tentacles to Mutare because it’s  predominantly a farming and mining area which also boasts of a number of manufacturing firms,” Bhebhe said.

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