Bevan Joseph’s journey began in the marine sector, selling boats. Having, from a young age, an interest in machinery, he particularly enjoyed selling large cruisers.
The early 1980s recession gave him the incentive to join an industry which would provide a solid career in sales.
It was his uncle who approached him with an opportunity that eventually would determine the trajectory of an entire career.
Working for the Suttons Motor Group at the time, an organisation which owns various franchises such as City Hino, Bevan’s uncle offered him an interview for a job that would see him leave the marine industry and enter the world of trucks. Bevan was soon selling Bedfords, Holden cars and Leyland trucks.
After a brief sojourn, he returned to the dealership which had then switched over to a Hino dealership. And, here he would remain as one of its most decorated salespeople though the roles have changed over the years.
“I’ve been doing fleet, government and a little bit of management, but mainly retail selling and small business customers,” he says. “I’ve also held a position of training here. I’ve trained a lot of the salesmen that have come and gone over the years.”
That has resulted in Bevan often being the first chosen to sell the newest Hino model. In 1986 he was the first person to sell a Hino FF Turbo and later a Dutro 2, as well as the 35,000th Hino FS from the Ranger series, which is still running today with almost 1.5 million kilometres on the dash.
Bevan has enjoyed selling tipper trucks throughout the years starting with the Super Dolphin. Vehicles from the 700 series remain a particular favourite due to their capabilities in tipper applications.
“I’ve been the number one salesman in Australia twice in my career and I’ve participated in our skills contest and came second and third, which is a highly recognised thing within the Hino group,” he says. “I’m pretty much the oldest salesman here now.”
That also makes him a walking encyclopedia when it comes to Hino product. Given its long-term presence in the transport industry, the dealership has been an integral part of the Hino history in Australia for over 55 years.
It also makes City Hino one of the longest established truck dealerships in Australia – something Bevan and the team are very proud of.
City Hino has won the Sales Excellence Award on several occasions and has been a top parts and service ranking dealership within the country.
Thanks to Bevan, it has also been honoured with the Salesman of the Year twice. In fact, the entire sales team has constantly been in the Top Hino Sales Guild during its six year history.
Along with these accomplishments, it has been involved directly or indirectly in many landmarks for the brand as well.
Back in 1981, the City Hino’s sales team sold one of the last of the Hino LB 560 models produced. It eventually became the F generation of Hino trucks.
Three years later in 1984, City Hino was one of the first dealerships to retail a FS Super Dolphin. With the introduction of a new management team, City Hino packed up and moved to its new and current home at Arndell Park in 2017.
Although it left 35 years of memories behind at its Guildford location, the team saw sales jump by 300 units per year, bringing it to its new benchmark.
“As far as the new building goes, we refurbished the whole dealership,” Bevan explains. “There’s been a lot of investment in service and spare parts, in the sales office and in trainees.”
According to Bevan, the dealership is performing to expectations and is well-positioned in the market.
“We’ve got a good team here, it’s basically, in recent years, doubled in size,” he says.
City Hino is selling on average around 600 trucks a year. That, according to Bevan, is exceptional. Having that many sales, he acknowledges, requires strong support, with the finance department recognised for the ongoing assistance it provides to help with sales .
Both the spare parts and service department has also grown. The service department has also been recognised by its peers for its work by achieving several accolades within its field.
The sales staff now includes seven salesmen plus support staff, with the dealership team, as it currently stands, employing 85 staff members.
To celebrate its 40th anniversary, City Hino hosted the Hino Roadshow Open Day on 18 August 2022.
Separate to this, City Hino held a special event. All staff, many customers and suppliers were all in attendance.
“We’ve taken pride in providing customers with a large range of new and quality used trucks,” notes Bevan.
Among its many accomplishments and accolades, what matters most to the team at City Hino, ultimately is its customers.
Currently, one of the challenges Bevan faces is selling trucks when delivery times have been protracted by external market forces.
“We’ve never had to do that before, given we’ve always had trucks in stock but at the moment we’ve got nothing,” he says.
As part of the Suttons family group, there’s a continual focus on enhancing customer service.
“We want to be the number one dealer and we are the number one dealer in Sydney,” he says. “Hino’s decade of dominance is here.”
