With the unveiling of the new name and one colour that now unites the brands Sulky, Sky and Prolog under one single SKY Agriculture banner, French family-owned group Burel has completed a transformation whose foundations were laid 10 years ago. It’s a move which, beyond a simple change of identity, opens the door to a new dynamic to serve modern agriculture in Europe.
While the family-owned group, owner of the former Sulky, Prolog and Sky brands, reports consolidated sales of 85 million euros for the 22-23 financial year, its management continues to work on its evolution. SKY Agriculture’s stated aim is to be at the side of tomorrow’s farmers, adapted to the needs of agriculture in Europe. Over and above the name change, this is the culmination of a carefully considered process of reflection around a ‘mono-brand’ strategy and positioning, since the first milestones in the transformation of this solid group were laid 10 years ago.
Julien Burel, Chairman of the Group, explains: “Taking our time, without rushing things, so as to do things in the right order, is part of our DNA. In 2018, we created the baseline ‘Farming together’ which initially allowed us to materialize the link between our three brands Sulky, Prolog and Sky. The evolution continued with, in 2020, the legal restructuring of the group internally and the reorganisation of the sales, after-sales and parts department. We started, so to speak, by redoing the inside of the house before repainting the outside walls. And today, we can announce the culmination of our work, with the birth of the SKY Agriculture brand. “
SKY Agriculture is a concentrate of SULKY, and looks to the future, with a name that’s easier to pronounce outside France. David Guy, Group Managing Director, comments: “Just because everything is going well doesn’t mean we shouldn’t change anything. Our group is solid and has achieved excellent results in recent years. But things can move fast. We have seen this clearly with covid, the war in Ukraine. So we need to remain cautious. By bringing our three brands together under a single banner, our aim is to be there in the future to better support farmers as they move towards positive agriculture that meets environmental and social challenges.”
This single-brand strategy also enables SKY Agriculture to adapt to the changing face of agricultural equipment distribution in Europe: the market is becoming more concentrated, and the dealer network is being restructured, with the number of dealers declining steadily over the last few years. The creation of SKY Agriculture is also intended to support the Group’s export growth. Although 40% of sales are currently made outside France, SKY Agriculture intends to increase this proportion to 50%, notably through the dynamism of its research and development department, which focuses on four key areas: precision, technology, energy efficiency and agronomy.
With SKY Agriculture, there’s no more blue, green and red in farmyards! All the brand’s equipment will be dressed in graphite grey and titanium white, which have the advantage of matching all tractor colours. David Guy adds: “No more colourful hitches! In choosing these high-tech colour codes, we’ve also thought about the farmer, who can be proud of his tractor, whatever its colour.
The new SKY agriculture machines will be on display during the upcoming Agritechnica trade fair in Hanover, Germany.
All Sky Agriculture machines are painted now in graphite grey and titanium white
