AGRIBUSINESS company McGregor Gourlay has been serving northern NSW and Southern QLD for 125 years and on July 1 2022, it proudly opened the doors of its fourteenth branch in Dorrigo.

McGregor Gourlay purchased the former Beaumont’s Produce Rural Store in Vine Street from Neville Beaumont earlier in the year, who in turn had bought the business from Norco in 2006.

In the sixteen years he owned the store, Neville earned a reputation for supplying the Dorrigo region with quality rural produce and trademark family-business customer service.

McGregor Gourlay Group General Manager Michael Slater said Neville was passionate about the lifelong legacy he had created and wanted someone to take on the business and treat it as their own.

“Neville contacted me back in February 2022 and invited us to come around and have a chat,” Michael said.

“He liked how we operated our business and treated our staff and customers.

“He thought we were the right people for the job and once the ball started rolling, it didn’t take long and McGregor Gourlay purchased the Beaumont’s business outright.

“It’s an historic moment when two independent Australian-owned companies such as these come together.”

Michael says McGregor Gourlay – which was set up by pioneering stock and station agent John Archibald McGregor in Warialda in 1897 – wasn’t looking to establish a branch in Dorrigo at the time.

“Rather, it was an opportunity that arose, and when we looked at the proposition, it connected our western branches to our coastal branches, so it was a good strategic move,” Michael said.

The Dorrigo branch employs five full time staff and is about to recruit another, bringing the total McGregor Gourlay workforce to 137.

Neville Beaumont’s daughter Kylie Raymond has stayed on as Branch Manager, as have all the former Beaumont’s staff, and she is excited by the opportunities afforded by the new venture.

“At 75 and 70 years of age, my parents had reached retirement age and were unable to help me as much as they once did, and I needed more support,” Kylie said.

“My family are proud Dorrigo farmers, they wanted Beaumont’s to remain a family business, albeit with new owners, and that is the reason why we chose McGregor Gourlay.

“It is Australian owned, all its directors are Australian farmers, and that is important to my customers here in Dorrigo.”

Kylie has witnessed changes in Dorrigo.

Many of the dairy farms have disappeared, transitioning into beef, pasture and maize, and the area has become popular with small acreage and hobby farmers.

Kylie believes the market accessibility now offered by the McGregor Gourlay Group will enable her to grow the Dorrigo operation.

“We have more to offer customers,” Kylie said.

A greater selection of products and services, including the ability to purchase from, and do transfers between, other McGregor Gourlay stores, as well as greater purchasing power, will benefit customers.

“I still think of the store as my own and it is undoubtedly still my passion,” Kylie said.

“The staff are also locals and share a real passion for the rural industry.”

Despite three years of less-than-optimal conditions, with drought, bushfires, COVID and most recently floods ravaging the region, Michael is optimistic about the future.

Plans are already afoot to expand agronomic services down the track and revitalise the product range for agricultural enterprises of all types and sizes as well as pet owners.

Michael says the reaction from Dorrigo locals to the new venture has been positive.

“Customers have been reassured to find the same staff and the same service at the same location,” Michael said.

“We look forward to working with Kylie to continue providing this, and much, much more.”

By Liz TICKNER, Write On Media