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UTAX (UK)’s latest results show
that it achieved a turnover of £13.7
million in 2014-15, up almost 18%
on the previous year. In recognition
of its consistent growth over five
consecutive years, UTAX German
HQ awarded the UK operation
the accolade of Best Global Sales
Growth.
Continued investment in staff, training
and technical support saw UTAX UK’s
head office team increase by almost 30%
last year. In the same period, the company
grew its partner network, with the addition
of 20 new dealers, and brought a further
500 devices under direct service contracts,
bringing the total number of machines
under contract to just short of 4,000.
Managing Director Shaun Wilkinson
expects this to rise to more than 5,000 by
the end of this fiscal year.
Wilkinson said that the firm’s focus on
providing flexible and practical software
solutions, together with the roll out of
new, faster, smarter A3 and A4 colour MFP
ranges, promises to make the second half
of 2015 very exciting.
He attributes UTAX’s impressive growth
to its network of partners, technologically
advanced software and hardware products
and strategic channel developments.
“We have established a solid
reputation for delivering reliable products
and software – but you only get that
reputation if the people you work with care
about that reputation and want to make
the difference. That means that all those
involved – the people working for UTAX
and those we work with, our partners –
pay attention to detail,” he said.
He added: “I personally enjoy being at
the coal face and having the opportunity
to interact with our customer base and
believe it’s important to do so. This way
I get invaluable feedback on all sorts
of issues that might either need our
immediate attention or longer term
approach.”
Partner support
Equally important to UTAX UK’s success is
its commitment to strong partnerships and
to supporting its partners and going the
extra mile to help them succeed.
“To us, it’s not out of the ordinary, it’s
in our DNA,” explained Wilkinson. ”We
strive to help them succeed because their
success provides us with the impetus to
develop further and to keep improving.
The security and longevity that we offer
UTAX (UK) achieves double-digit growth for the fifth year in a row
Going places –
at the double
our partners and the range of software
solutions and equipment they, in turn, can
offer their customers drive our business
forward, resulting in a perfect commercial
circle.”
“Customers now have a much better
understanding of what they can expect
from their provider. They expect their
supplier to be able to assist them with
the complete print environment, be this
MFPs, printers, software, or a combination
of all. This is fundamentally changing the
market dynamic; because they are better
informed and more accountable, customers
are looking for a longer term relationship
with their provider, which suits our partners
as they are looking for customer retention
and loyalty.”
Wilkinson adds that this business is no
longer just about selling ‘boxes’. “For those
who think it is, success will be a stranger,”
he warned.
“We’re no longer selling only ‘copiers’;
we’re selling software-based managed
print services that happen to be integrated
within a ‘box’. The fastest growing area is
managed print solutions utilising the entire
scalable range of products (both hardware
and software) that we have available
and that are capable of integrating into
the office networked environment at the
smallest SME to the largest corporate.
We are also strategically placed to supply
more public sector organisations with
myriad opportunities to achieve substantial
savings and efficiencies within a secure
environment,” he said.
Looking forward
Commenting on where UTAX will focus
its efforts in 2016, Wilkinson said that it
will continue to build on the success of
last year and maximise every opportunity
within the channel including the IT and
distribution markets.
He added: “We are continuing to
invest in our sales, marketing, professional
services and direct service division. Our
new A4 colour MFP range has been well
received and exciting new products are in
the pipeline, which we believe will provide
solutions within a number of previously
untapped markets.”
Wilkinson points out that partners
and potential partners can find out more
at UTAX UK’s annual partner roadshow,
which is running throughout the country
until the end of February 2016. “This
will give prospective new partners the
opportunity to meet members of our sales
and solutions teams and actually see some
of the newest models in action,” he said.
Venues include Luton Hoo in
Hertfordshire on October 14, with the
final demo day taking place in London in
February 2016.
Shaun Wilkinson,
managing director,
UTAX UK
UTAX (UK)’s 50
top performing
partners were
invited to attend
its Annual
Awards Dinner at
Goodwood House.
