PRINTITRESELLER.UK 27 high on the agenda, Data Direct has also been appointed the exclusive UK distributor for Olivetti. The company is offering Olivetti hardware, consumables and spares, and also has responsibility for service and warranties in the UK. It has a team in place working in the field who can assist dealers with PDI, set up, training, maintenance etc. Cowan pointed out the advantages. “Firstly (and importantly for smaller dealers) we don’t force them to commit to volumes. We’re just going out and offering them what they want. Secondly, there are some dealers who really like having Olivetti back and the reason they like it is that you can’t find an Olivetti device everywhere. That eliminates the common challenge where a customer googles a printer model and then buys from whomever quotes the cheapest price, so it gives them a competitive edge. “Another thing is that there are some end-users still loyal to the Olivetti brand and now with us managing the warranties, we’re taking away the pain point of having to manage claims through Italy.” Sustainable growth Cowan confirmed that business is good. “We are continuing to grow; we’re consolidating some areas of our market to enable us to do more with expanding our product ranges. We used to sit more with the high-end consumables, the toners, the drums, etc. Now we’re doing a lot more spare parts to become more of a single source for a much wider range of products. “We are also looking into other new product areas which will provide our dealers with the opportunity to secure new revenue streams. For example, we have just signed a new partnership with Inepro, a developer of payment and management systems.” Data Direct has also expanded its team, just recently it announced a number of new experienced hires including Pete Blackman and Paul Bannister, both of whom have many years of industry experience. In conclusion, Cowan said that one of the big advantages of Data Direct is its agility. “I think COVID proved how we could pivot very quickly, within a month we replaced lost revenue in print with new categories. We can make decisions and act very quickly and that’s what we will continue to do.” www.data-direct.co.uk BUSINESS UPDATE Increase customer’s productivity by up to 50% If I told you there was a super simple way that you could increase customer’s productivity by up to 50%, you’d want to know all about it right? What if I also said that at the same time you could enhance sustainability and help make their working environment safer? Sounds too good to be true surely. The answer is switching to linerless printing, from traditional linered media, for your thermal printing operations for barcodes and labels. With Zebra, making the switch is simple. Zebra has decades of expertise in both thermal printer hardware design and manufacture, as well as the label technology that we fully test and match to our printers. The result? A total linerless solution called ZeroLiner. Upsides? Let’s start with productivity. With up to 50% more labels per roll you will be making fewer roll changes giving increased uptime. With no requirement for any liner take-up equipment to look after, this also reduces cost of the overall solution. Ease of use? Zebra’s printers and labels are designed to work together, providing less jamming than the competition. Even better, with linerless there’s no calibration or additional setup required— just drop in a roll and print. In regards a safer and more streamlined working environment, with no need for peeling labels or disposing of backing liner, your frontline workers can be more efficient or freed up to support other tasks. Also, more labels per roll means fewer boxes of labels to transport and store. Take away the silicone backing liner, and you also take away the potential for slip hazards from liner piles beneath printers. And what of Sustainability? By omitting the need for backing liner, which is largely unrecyclable, this can significantly reduce what you send to landfill. With 50% more labels per roll, as well as reduced storage, you also reduce transportation; fewer trips to customers, a 40% weight reduction, all of which helps to reduce CO2 and other Green House Gas emissions. Downsides? Not really, but you will need to avoid what we call “the attack of the ooze”. With no backing liner, if you use non-Zebra media, it may be that adhesive leaks inside the printer. By pairing Zebra printers with ZeroLiner media, these risks are significantly reduced, when customers exercise a regular maintenance and cleaning process. What about volume? For MTL customers we now have a solution. In another Zebra first, we have just launched the ZT411 Linerless industrial printer, complementing our range of linerless mobile and desktop printers. Capable of producing thousands of labels per day, this new printer is built on the hugely popular ZT400 Series, which beats at the heart of supply chains globally. Partners registered with Zebra’s award-winning PartnerConnect program can take advantage of a fantastic demo offer on this new printer until 31st March 2025 – visit www.zebra.com to sign up today. THE ZEBRA FILES Watch the video to find out more about Zebra ...or scan the QR code BUSINESS INSIGHT
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