Jul 25 A series of significant milestones for the team.

July 25th, 2022.

The Bowater Motor Group acquired the Toyota franchise for the top of the south back in 1990, and as such as welcomed onto the team a large number of the existing Wrightcars Toyota team.

That was 32 years ago, and we are proud to say that we still have a good number of those same individuals still with us and celebrating some significant work anniversaries over this past few months. 

We love celebrating success and excellence and there is something very special about a workplace where so many of the team have chosen to literally invest decades into moving BMG forward. We thank them all, and are very proud to take a minute to celebrate these fantastic people.

Martin Thompson.

Martin’s smiling face has been a large part of the Bowater Toyota story, and a face many of our clients are very familiar with.

Over the last 35 years Martin has moved off the tools from his initial role as a technician, to behind the desk and in front of our service department as an advisor. His knowledge is nicely balanced with a sincerity and friendliness that makes getting your vehicle serviced an absolute pleasure!

Martin is a fun member of the team, and is always keen for a good laugh. In his downtime he can be found with his wife on his yacht cruising the Abel Tasman National Park.

We have so many photos of Marty over the years but these next couple are awesome. 

2019. Chris Westley and Martin Thompson with a copy of a newspaper from 1992 that a customer bought in. It contained an ad for Bowater Toyota, which also featured many of those celebrating milestones today. 

Kieron Reilly.

Kieron Reilly exemplifies the word performance.

Over the past 40 years he has been working with Toyota in Nelson, rising to the role of Wrightcars Parts and Accessories Manager in 1989. When Bowater Motor Group took over the franchise in 1990 Kieron came along for the ride and has been a key part of the Bowater Toyota story.

He is not just any manager though; in the eyes of many Kieron is a titan of the field, guiding his department to a level of excellence that is basically unrivalled across the national Toyota franchises. It is a big call, but the mere fact that Kieron and his team have won the Parts and Accessories Excellence Cup (previously known as the Kaida Cup) 9 times speaks volumes.

When approached for anecdotes to accompany this momentous milestone Kieron’s response was typically dry – “nothing comes to mind that you could possibly be brave enough to commit to print!!”

A dedicated family man, Kieron and his wife Kaye have 5 children, and 2 grandchildren.

Murray Martin.

Murray has been a stable influence in Bowater Toyota’s dedicated service team and overall workshop environment for decades. 

This 30 year milestone is very notable and a nod to the great culture we enjoy at Bowater Toyota.
Over the coming years we will enjoy many others also celebrating similar milestones as Murray - testament to the great workplace and "family feeling" that has been established. 

A passionate supporter of Toyota Murray has owned several Hilux over the years but is now moving into a new RAV, which he will be getting very soon. Word in the smoko room is that he is quietly pretty excited!

Even though his Super Gold Card has kicked in he is still with us and now working part time. This has been a great opportunity to pass on his years of valuable experience and knowledge to the younger members in the workshop. His mentorship is very valuable and very much appreciated by all.

If you look in the newspaper article from 1992 Murray is right there on the bottom row too. Time flies!!

Brian Mercer.

In June of 2022 Brian Mercer celebrated 35 years with Toyota, initially beginning with WrightCars in Nelson.

When Bowater’s acquired the Toyota franchise in 1990, creating Bowater Toyota, Brian came to along with many others, such as Kieron and Martin, also celebrated in this article.

Brian heads the Bowater Toyota Grooming department and ensures that cars head onto the store floor in tiptop condition and is incredibly proud that he is instrumental in ensuring our clients enjoy excellence everyday.