Huppatz's Garage in Saddleworth, South Australia ca 1918. Photo courtesy SLSA B17637
In 1907 the Ford Motor Company of Canada
saw Australia "...as their largest single foreign market". With the
immediate success of the Model 'T' they sought to organise their business
and capitalise in this so far untapped oasis. In August 1909 the head of Ford Canada and set up
an Australian Office in Melbourne with Mr. R.J. Durance at the helm. Ford
Canada sought sole distributors for each state and the initial appointments were:-
In August 1909 Duncan & Fraser were appointed sole distributors for South Australia and Broken Hill in New South Wales. Each
state dealt directly with Ford Canada establishing their own importing arrangements, shipping, customs, sales, servicing,
spare parts and pricing.
Duncan & Fraser initially set up company branches to service their needs. The first branch was set up in 1906 at Mount
Gambier selling Argyll & Standard cars to service the fruit and vinyards in the affluent Coonawarra region. From Mount
Gambier the area immediately over the border of south western Victoria was also within easy distance. Later a second branch
was set up in Hahndorf in 1912 giving the company a proper foothold in the rapidly expanding and very rich Adelaide Hills
region.
Duncan & Fraser encouraged local garages to service Ford products fitting only genuine spare parts with the famous Ford
flying winged pyramid logo sign normally adorning their premises. This sales and servicing strategy
remained in place and served Ford well for a number of years.
Ford sales increased dramatically and in May 1918 Duncan & Fraser Ltd. broke up their sole area that by now included the
Darling Districts and appointed "Urban Dealers" and "Limited Urban Dealers" to service the growing market. The difference
between the two was an "Urban Dealer" could sell everywhere where a "Limited Urban Dealer" had to stay within their appointed
territory. Duncan & Fraser Ltd. appointed themselves as an "Urban Dealer" and Behrens & Marshall (later The Henry Car Co.)
as the first "Limited Urban Dealer". This arrangement proved to be unpopular as Behrens & Marshall's salesmen could not go
outside of their allocated territory, but a Duncan & Fraser Ltd. salesman could come in and undercut their potential sales.
The feeling was that the Duncans were being greedy by importing and retailing Ford cars so "not only have their cake but eat
it too". It was this growing resentment that French would later encounter.
Ford Canada were concerned with sole distributors selling other products apart from Ford. In Duncan & Fraser's case over the
years these included Oldsmobile, Argyll, Standard, BSA, Itala, Kelsey, Singer, Chalmers, De Dion Bouton, Duplex Lorries,
Republic Lorries, Hallford Lorries and of course electric tramcars. The Duncans as holders of the South Australian
distributorship were under immense pressure from Ford Canada with their other business interests and finally relented by
annexing the Ford distributorship. In October 1920 a new company Duncan Motors Limited was formed to sell and service only
Ford products. Duncan & Fraser Ltd. sold and serviced all other makes and other parts of the business. In effect the two
companies both owned by the Duncans were under the same roof with Duncan Motors Ltd. occupying western side of the factory
and Duncan & Fraser Ltd. on the eastern side servicing all other brands.The painted signage outside the factory was changed
to reflect the change in structure.
By 1922 the sales territories were properly organised by the appointment of Ford dealerships. A Ford dealer, normally
appointed in a region or town, signed an agreement to sell new cars, maintain a full inventory of genuine Ford spare parts &
accessories and offer full mechanical service to maintain the product. Ford dealerships have remained part of Australia to
the present day. When Ford Canada formed Ford Australia in March 1925 Duncan Motors Ltd. lost their sole distributorship and
was downgraded to a dealership, albeit the largest in South Australia. The oldest Ford dealership in South Australia is
Maughan Thiem's at Cheltenham, Adelaide. Formerly known as Behrens & Marshall they have been selling and servicing Ford
products since 1912.
In the December 1922 "The Echo"
Duncan Motors Ltd. published a complete list of all 35 official Ford Dealers for South
Australia & Broken Hill. These were:-
In the February 1923 "The Echo" the following newly appointed Ford Dealers
for South Australia & Broken Hill were announced:-
In the September 1923 "The Echo" the following newly appointed Ford Dealers
for South Australia & Broken Hill were announced:-
In the December 1923 "The Echo" the following newly appointed Ford Dealers
for South Australia & Broken Hill were announced:-
In the February 1924 "The Echo" the following newly appointed Ford Dealer
for South Australia & Broken Hill was announced:-
In the March 1924 "The Echo" the following newly appointed Ford Dealers
for South Australia & Broken Hill were announced:-
In the June 1924 "The Echo" the following newly appointed Ford Dealer
for South Australia & Broken Hill was announced:-
In the December 1924 "The Echo" the following newly appointed Ford Dealers
for South Australia & Broken Hill were announced:-
Little is known about the Ford
dealerships and we would really like to learn more. Did you have a relative
that was involved in selling or servicing Ford cars during this period? Have
you an old photograph(s) hidden away in those old, dusty family albums? Do
you have any surviving paperwork or contracts? Do you have any original receipts?
Do you have an original name plate fitted to Ford cars at the time? If the
answer is 'yes' to any of these questions I would love to hear from you.
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