01732 759725 48 Q&A View from the channel Q: How’s business; better or worse than 12 months ago? And how confident are you about the future? A: Despite the crippling global machine, toner, and parts shortages, we have still realised a growth of 15 per cent and that’s because the Copybox team have had to act creatively to make sure our customers are not inconvenienced. We’ve worked closely with our customers to figure out how we could supply them with a solution that will help them work as normally as possible – even if it’s not the exact product they ordered. In some cases, we’ve taken a bit of a hit, at the time, but now our customers know we’ll move heaven and earth to help them and that’s why they come back to us time after time and our business continues to grow. Considering the feedback we’re receiving from customers and the continuing demand for our products, I’m feeling very positive about the future. Q: In what areas are you experiencing strongest demand? A: At the heart of Copybox is the mission to truly understand our customers’ needs, so we aim – where possible – to keep good stock levels of the most popular products in the range. In terms of product demand, it’s still the mid-volume colour MFPs with document management software that make up the bulk of the orders in schools, estate agents and most of the larger organisations. However, I’ve also noticed that we are still receiving requests for the small MFPs and printers for home-based offices, which indicates to me that the migration back to communal offices is taking a bit longer than originally predicted. Another interesting observation is that we’re finding companies are now looking at local suppliers because they say they want to build up strong local relationships. Salespeople come and go but, we’re told, local suppliers like us, give a reliable, steadfast service that appears to be dwindling in some larger providers. Q: How have you changed/are you changing business operations to exploit new opportunities? A: This year we have been embracing diversification by partnering with software and local IT companies for telecoms and IT services. Not only have we extended our customer service to encompass the very latest changes in technology, but customers benefit by being able to obtain all of their related business solutions and service in one place. One of our core strengths comes from the fact that when we started Copybox, we were all from a technical background, so our IT partners leave us to manage the print side of their business too. It’s a win-win situation. Q: What do you see as the biggest challenges facing channel businesses today? A: For the channel, as a whole, the last 18 months has been challenging, with the global stock issues, and there are a few knock-on effects from that because many businesses couldn’t wait and have had to adapt, turning to paperless document management software. Combine that with the slow return to Paul Kamlesh, Technical Director, Copybox Document Systems the offices and companies looking to cut costs, print volume is being affected. Q: Could vendors and distributors do more to help you overcome them? And if so, what? A: We appreciate how hard it’s been for the manufacturers, and, from our own experience, I can say, honestly, that we are very well supported by Develop. The stock levels are now back to where they were before the pandemic, we have an excellent relationship with the team and, if we need anything, we just pick up the phone and have a chat. Q: If you could change one aspect of your job what would it be and why? A: I’ve given this question a lot of thought and I cannot think of one thing I’d change about my job. To my mind, I have the best job in the world. I enjoy the warmth and dedication of the people I work with; I enjoy making a positive difference for our customers and spending time with them, I’m impressed by our range of products and services, feel fully immersed in the local community and always looking for more ways to support them and I relish the challenge of pitting our wits against our larger competitors – it’s exhilarating. In a nutshell, I’m more than happy with my lot. https://copyboxdocumentsystems.co.uk Paul Kamlesh
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