01732 759725
Print.IT Reseller
18
From its birthplace in Newbury, to
its current HQ in Swindon, UTAX
which is today the largest dealer-
only network in the UK has gone
from strength to strength. For the
last three years, the company has
reported double-digit growth and
a corresponding increase in its
highly skilled support staff across all
departments. And as testimony to its
corporate ethos, 25 years on, 30%
of the original workforce namely
Financial Controller, Kevin Good and
Office Manager, Wendy Ilott, are still
with the company.
According to Managing Director Shaun
Wilkinson, at the core of its 25-years of
growth and success lies a simple fact –
UTAX always puts the customer first. “Our
main focus is always on our partners and
the fulfilment of their customers’ needs.
Our dedicated team provides expert back-
up through sales, marketing and technical
support to enable our partners to offer
a professional service to their customers
– and to grow their own businesses
profitably,” he said.
Speed of transformation
Wilkinson is unsurprised by the speed of
transformation in the print market. “Some
companies seem to think it is remarkable
how quickly the print market has changed,”
he commented.
“However, for the last eighteen months
we have been working towards a different
vision for the future. We can all see that
the convergence of analogue and digital,
the development of the cloud and the
massive increase in storage capabilities,
have contributed to reduce the role of
the traditional photocopier, in favour of
solutions-based MFP products.”
Wilkinson believes that the traditional
‘print and copy’ environment will diminish
and that in the future, the price per copy
or click, although important, will become
less relevant. “With customers demanding
more from their suppliers and the ability to
use ever sophisticated software solutions
to help manage their businesses, the real
focus of UTAX’s investment is on developing
with our partners, better and ultra-efficient
Managed Print Solutions and the creation
of – and investment in – an enlarged direct
service and support division,” he said.
cover story
Around the same time as Tim Berners-Lee was creating the early protocols for the Web,
UTAX (UK) was beginning its journey to 25-years of unprecedented success.
UTAX (UK) celebrates
25 years in business
SMART launch
So significant is this work in the software
support and development departments,
that pre-sales, solution design and post-
sales support activity has increased four-
fold over the last 12 months.
“We now have one of the most
efficient, competitive and highest quality
range of hardware devices supported by
extraordinarily brilliant software Apps
that really allow our partners to attack
the market,” added Wilkinson. “More
importantly, our software platform allows
us to support our partners by creating
bespoke solutions to resolve client
problems and create outstanding solutions
that drive sales.”
UTAX will soon be launching a new
System Monitoring Analysis Reporting
Tool, (SMART), providing partners with
complete control over a client’s global
installations across their MIF and providing
a multiplicity of remote monitoring and
hardware management solutions.
Strategic goal
Wilkinson explained his strategic goal for
UTAX (UK): “We have to ensure that every
UTAX partner is in a position not just to
sell hardware, but to provide software
solutions that meet their clients’ managed
print objectives.
“Our industry faces a major challenge
over the next five years and that is to
change the perceptions associated with our
industry. We have to adapt to new ways of
working, new ways of providing solutions
and new ways of fairly and transparently
charging for our goods and services.
We must ensure that our businesses are
agile and adaptable so we can respond
quickly to changing markets and customer
demands,” he said.
To find out more about partnership
opportunities with UTAX, email
, call
01793 786008
or visit
utax.co.uk
.
Our main
focus is
always on our
partners and
the fulfilment
of their
customers’
needs.
ShaunWilkinson,
Managing Director,
UTAX (UK)
