Jarod Maclennan and Comer Board

An International LoneStar was partly to blame for Jarod Maclennan‘s decision to leave his career as a diesel mechanic for one in truck sales – and it‘s paid off, with him being named the winner of Intertruck‘s inaugural Sales Star Award.

Jarod had been a diesel mechanic in Auckland for 20 years but says he was tired of Auckland‘s traffic and was looking for a change of pace.

“I was over Auckland, so getting my family out of the city was the biggest reason for the move,” says Jarod. “I thought if we changed cities we‘d look at going on a new career path, which is what I decided to do.”

When Jarod started looking for a new job, he saw an advertisement for Intertruck in the Bay of Plenty.

“It wasn‘t long after Neil Wood‘s LoneStar had gone on the road. I was working at Albany at the time but my boss also had a quarry in the Bombays, which is where Neil is based, so seeing that driving up and down the road got my attention with the International brand.

“I moved the family down to Tauranga at the end of 2014 – wife Sarah, children Hunter (9) and Aria (7) and stepson Zak (19),” says Jarod. “The move has been very successful for the whole family.”

Jarod says he admires Intertruck managing director Comer Board and the business he has built up.

“It‘s the kiwi way. I‘m very proud of being a kiwi and being able to produce a truck that we build from start to finish. Nothing gives you more pleasure than seeing a New Zealand-built truck driving down the road. I am very humbled and proud to be working with someone who has turned his dream into a reality.”

Jarod admits he initially found a career in sales challenging after being a mechanic for so long.

“It was a bit hard to start with. I think the biggest thing was rejection, being told that no, they had bought something else. That was the hardest hurdle I had to get over, the rejection. Once I was able to do that, and with the 9870 being on the road for over a year and everyone taking notice of it, that helped me to move forward with my sales.”

Intertruck NZ sales manager Hugh Green says the sales award was introduced to recognise the salesman who sold the largest number of trucks in a year.

“Jarod was up against a couple of very experienced salesmen and has proven himself to be very dedicated to what he does. He‘s built some really good relationships with customers that we traditionally struggled to get in the door of, and he‘s been able to get in there and sell trucks to them. He‘s excellent at building relationships, that‘s his strongest point. His customers seem to really trust him, which is quite unusual in the truck sales business.”

When told what Hugh said about his success, Jarod was quietly pleased.

“I just go out and try my best every day to try and help promote the company and get more and more of our trucks on the road. Building a relationship is the biggest thing. It‘s always good to have your customer ring you up and say, ‘you know, it‘s time for another truck‘ or ‘we‘re looking at more‘.”

Intertruck general manager Comer Board also congratulated Jarod, saying he is a good fit for the company and the brand.

“He has built good customer relationships and that follows our brand very well, and that is why he‘s succeeding.”

Jarod says there isn‘t any secret to success in selling trucks.

“Just keep knocking on those doors, that‘s the only strategy I have. Just keep knocking on those doors and keep promoting the International brand. We‘re the only kiwis doing it.

“I remember when I first started my apprenticeship there was Toyota in Thames and Ford in Auckland, and then all these places were closing down. No one was left, everything was being imported from overseas, so to be the only one in New Zealand building trucks is very cool.”

Jarod says it‘s also an advantage to have the people who built the trucks available at the end of the phone if a customer has a problem.

“Having the guys who know how the truck is built and how everything works on it is pretty cool. If you do have a problem, being able to ring someone and say, ‘this is what it‘s doing‘ and have someone say, ‘well, go and look at this or go look at that‘ is awesome.”

Jarod’s Falcon

When he‘s not working, Jarod coaches Hunter‘s rugby and basketball teams and also tries to get to watch Aria‘s soccer games.

“I am a member of the On A Roll car club so when the sun is out the family and I are out cruising around the car shows in my 73 XA Ford Falcon that I built. But that is when there is any spare time!” Jarod laughs.

Jarod gets to keep the sales shield for a year and his name will remain on it until someone else manages to overtake his sales total.