With over 6,000 installations across Nigeria and Ghana, Original Equipment Manufacturer Representative for Konica Minolta and other top brands – Skysat Technologies Nigeria Limited can best be describe as the undisputable number one reseller of brand-new direct imaging (DI) printing machines in West Africa. Now with the company’s pristine, multi-storied building strategically located on the highbrow 35A, Saka Tinubu Street, Victoria Island, Lagos Nigeria that not only serves as the Corporate Headquarter but also houses the ultra-modern state-of-the-art showroom, Skysat is fully ready to exceed customers’ expectations. In this SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT INTERVIEW, WHERE To Print speaks with Executive Director, Mr. Ramzi Debs on a wide range of issues in the industry especially on the company’s post COVID plans. Below is excerpt of the interview: GENERALLY, 2020 HAS BEEN AN UNPREDICTABLE YEAR FOR ALL; WHAT CAN YOU SAY ARE THE POSITIVES OF 2020 BUSINESS YEAR? I will mention: i. Increased online sales revenue; ii. Improved delivery products and services systems; iii. Increase in our IT business and IT support; iv. Increase in remote technical support using modern IT tools; v. And increased use of Document Management Solutions from home workers. EXPERTS BELIEVE ESSENTIAL SERVICE AREAS SUCH AS DIGITAL PRINT, LABELLING, PACKAGING ETC THAT ADDRESS CONSUMPTION AND LIFESTYLES SHOULD BE THE FOCUS OF PRINT BUSINESS OWNERS; WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ON THIS? I align with this school of thought. Konica Minolta this year sold hundreds of units of AL190 digital label printers with variable data printing capabilities in Europe and the Americas. We believe this trend will propagate to Nigeria in both the medical and the food processing fields. This is why Skysat will display Konica Minolta’s state-of-the-art labelling solutions in our new showroom in Lagos. The other trend we are seeing is the increased use of Digital Production Printing systems used for short runs that can accommodate packaging such as devices that can print 350 gsm and with variable data printing technology to address customers more specifically. For Home Office and Small Office, Skysat offers BROTHER’s range of INKTANK Printers that are extremely cost effective to print documents at home, and you can send prints from your phone directly via WIFI. “Our next step will be an online portal which will allow our customers to log into their account on our portal, place order for consumables, request for service, and monitor the status of the engineer or their ordered spare parts and consumables live, real time”.SPECIFICALLY, WHICH PRODUCTS ARE YOU OFFERING TO TAKE CARE OF THESE AREAS IN THE MARKET AND WHAT ARE THEIR UNIQUE FEATURES? We will deploy Konica Minolta’s label printers such as the AL190 Label Printer. We will also display in our new showroom in Saka Tinubu Victoria Island Lagos, Konica Minolta’s new flagship model, the Accurio Press C12000 and C14000, 140 ppm 360 gsm duplex high-speed production printers at extremely low cost per print and excellent quality. Lastly, we are already displaying a full range of BROTHER INKTANK products such as the T510W to meet the small office and home office needs of our customers. WHAT PROCESS HAVE YOU PUT IN PLACE TO ENSURE YOUR CUSTOMERS GET YOUR QUALITY PRINT PRODUCTS AND CONSUMABLES FROM ANY PART OF THE COUNTRY? We have our branches and satellite offices spread across Nigeria such as in Victoria Island, Ikeja, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kano, Ghana. We also have engineers and sales people spread across all 36 States of the Federation in Nigeria and in Accra, Ghana. We have door-to-door deliveries synergy with DHL. Again, aside our online ordering with courier services, our next step will be an online portal which will allow our customers to log into their account on our portal, place order for consumables, request for service, and monitor the status of the engineer or their ordered spare parts and consumables live, real time. (c) Skysat’s Ultra-modern Showroom. (c) Skysat Konica Minolta Stock. (c) Skysat BROTHER Stock. WE UNDERSTAND THE SITUATION OF THINGS IN THE COUNTRY AS REGARDS LOCKDOWN AND RESTRICTIONS; HOW DO YOU ENSURE YOUR CUSTOMERS ALL OVER THE COUNTRY GET THEIR MAINTENANCE SERVICE AS AT WHEN DUE? We do Remote Service Support. We also opened hotlines for customer assisted repairs; and our Specific IT Desks are always available to resolve customer’s IT queries. We service and maintain over 6,000 machines in the field for 1,500 different clients. Some clients are extremely demanding and have contracts that require us to respond in 4 hours: we have priority lines for such clients to enable us meet the strict measures we have agreed on. A lot of the issues can be resolved over the phone or remotely because Konica Minolta’s new Bizhub “I” series is intelligent, intuitive and designed to be operated remotely. (c) Skysat’s Spare Parts & Consumables Inventory. IN RELATION TO COVID-19, HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH HEALTH ISSUE CONCERNING HANDLING AND USE OF YOUR PRODUCTS TO ENSURE SAFETY, HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF OPERATORS ESPECIALLY ON THE MACHINE AUTOMATION AND CONSUMABLES USAGE? All these are done through: i. Observance of safety protocols before and after each contact. ii. Disinfecting goods at the point of delivery. iii. Strict protocols such as obligatory use of Face Masks by staff, regular disinfecting and washing of hands after every contact, and so on. iv. Konica Minolta’s new devices are designed to have longer consumables life to minimize customer and engineer’s intervention. THIS YEAR IS INDEED A CHALLENGING YEAR FOR ALL; WHAT ADVICE WILL YOU GIVE TO SOMEONE THAT IS THINKING OF PULLING OUT OF PRINTING BUSINESS DUE TO LOW PATRONAGE? I will advise that they re-accesses operation and remove redundancies and reduce expenses. They should also explore more innovative ways like setting up an online portal and explore a combination of print with IT services. DO YOU SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEWLY FORMED – COMMITTEE OF ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURERS (OEM)/ EQUIPMENT SELLERS CLUSTER OF CHARTERED INSTITUTE OF PROFESSIONAL PRINTERS OF NIGERIA (CIPPON) AND WHY? Yes, It will enhance professionalism and control. “We service and maintain over 6,000 machines in the field for 1,500 different clients. Some clients are extremely demanding and have contracts that require us to respond in 4 hours: we have priority lines for such clients to enable us meet the strict measures we have agreed on.”WHAT DO YOU THINK SHOULD BE THE MAJOR TASK(S) OF THIS CLUSTER IN THE INDUSTRY? Block importation of used machines and related products: these used machines are giving substandard prints to the public, and at the same time preventing organizations like us to invest more in training of local staff as we our competing against unfair competition. THERE ARE SERIES OF PALLIATIVES BY GOVERNMENT AND FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS FOR BUSINESS OWNERS AFFECTED BY COVID-19, WHAT DO YOU THINK PRINTERS SHOULD DO TO BE ABLE TO ACCESS THESE FACILITIES, AND AT THE MOST CONSIDERATE RATE? Interest rate for one is an extremely big factor. Organizations like ours (as we are helping customers setup small scale print industries) should have access to Bank of Industry loans at single digit interest rate, which is often almost impossible to access. “Konica Minolta’s new devices are designed to have longer consumables life to minimize customer and engineer’s intervention.”HOW ARE YOU HELPING YOUR CUSTOMERS TO ACCESS THE RIGHT FACILITY FROM FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS BOTH WITHIN AND OUTSIDE THE COUNTRY TO INCREASE THEIR CAPACITY? Working with some financiers to support them with low interest loans, but without Government intervention, it is simply impossible. The local lenders are bound by market rates that today are simply not workable to build a sustainable business. (c) SKYSAT’s HQ @ 35A, Saka Tinubu Street, Victoria Island, Lagos – Nigeria. BRIEFLY LET US KNOW THE PLANS YOU HAVE FOR YOUR CUSTOMERS AS REGARDS TRAININGS TO BEEF UP OPERATORS’ KNOWLEDGE AND CAPACITY? Our plans are: i. Regular Customer relations visits. ii. Online product knowledge quizzes with rewards. iii. Regular operator’s knowledge audit. iv. We have our in-house Tutor who trains senior trainers and engineers, who in turn train our engineers for technical support on our equipment. v. We have an in-house IT Expert who trains the technical team for IT support. vi. We have an in-house Customer Service Manager who handles sales training and customer service training. WHAT ADVICE WILL YOU GIVE TO PRINT & ALLIED STAKEHOLDERS TO ENSURE PROFITABILITY AND SUSTAINABILITY OF THEIR BUSINESSES? My advice will be to: i. Start at your own level. ii. Be current with happenings and development in the industry. iii. Minimization of machine downtime. iv. Needs forecasting and appropriate level stocking of materials. v. Study the market carefully and research what product best fits your future requirements. GOING FORWARD FROM 2021, WHAT DO YOU FORESEE AND WHAT WILL YOU BE PROMISING YOUR CUSTOMERS ESPECIALLY IN YOUR PRODUCT AND SERVICE OFFERINGS? We’re promising our highly esteemed customers; i. State-of-the-art Konica Minolta AL190 Label Printers. ii. State-of-the-art Konica Minolta Accurio Press C12000 and C14000 Production Printers. iii. The all new MGI Jet Varnish 3d Systems with direct varnishing of prints for outstanding finishing. iv. Customer friendly pricing. v. Free consultancy services. vi. More interactive engagements. FINALLY, WE KNOW PRINTING CAN BE HIGHLY DEMANDING AND STRESSFUL BUSINESS, HOW DO YOU RELAX? I workout daily at home and spend time with my family. Traveling whenever we can, but unfortunately this is now off the table! THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME SIR. NB: Information on joju.substack.com is mostly adapted or culled from press releases or supporting affiliates’ contents and are thus copyright materials. These are not in any way the personal thought, opinion or view of the Publisher. If you liked this post from Joju’s Newsletter, why not share it? |