STOP, LOOK AND LISTEN

Dealers need to listen and learn if they are to continue to thrive – and bring the next generation of talent into the sector, says BOSS Federation’s SIMON DRAKEFORD

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n the door of Simon Drakeford’s office is a decal that reads ‘listening’ and ‘learning’ - two words that he likes to remind himself of, but which also have wider meaning for the office supplies sector.

“Part of that is ensuring that I remember to continue to listen, rather than just talk the whole time, which is a bad quality I have, but also because when you stop listening you stop learning, and when you stop learning you stop developing,” he explains.

Simon has always had a thirst for learning. Throughout his career which, for the past 15 years, has been as managing director of EO Group, among others – including Office Power – he has sought to remain at the cutting edge of technology and continue to learn and develop his businesses. Listening and learning is something that Simon believes that the office supplies sector needs to be better at, especially in a rapidly changing marketplace.

ADOPTING NEW TECHNOLOGY “Adopting new technology is a challenge in our sector,” he says. “It needs two things, typically; capital and a healthy attitude towards change. I have said this before, but I believe our sector needs to have a fear of not changing that is greater than its fear of change - which is not something I have always seen.

“There has been a resilience of bunkering down, waiting for the storm to end, and then coming out and carrying on as normal. I am not sure that is the way to thrive - or even survive - if you think of what has happened over the past three years, and it doesn’t look overly sunny in the future either. Change is a way that you evolve by default, by not hunkering down.”

This is something Simon has faced in the past decade as he has developed and marketed Office Power. “We have spent a huge amount of time, resource and money developing not only the technology but also the proposition that leverages that technology and the way we partner with dealers,” he says. “One of the challenges we have is that there is a perception – which is very often incorrect – that we dealers cannot adjust because our sector is a bit ‘I know what I like, and I like what I know.’ As a sector we need to have that inherent thirst for learning, but sometimes we play that down and don’t listen.”

OPTIMISM IN TOUGH TIMES The need for dealers to continue to learn and develop is

It is definitely tougher than it was three years ago

critically important if they are to be successful, especially given the ongoing tough market conditions. “We continue to see significant diversification away from traditional office supplies. Sales of traditional office supplies are still down on pre-COVID levels, on average. Some businesses are doing well where they have diversified, or had diversified already, pre-pandemic.”

Simon acknowledges that the recovery in the industry is patchy, with those operating in large cities, and with a large corporate customer base, not seeing sales return like those selling to SMEs in smaller conurbations. “There was optimism in the sector when we had ‘Freedom Day’ but that was quickly dampened by the Ukraine crisis and the lockdown in China and the impact this has had on the supply chain in general, but particularly on paper,” he says. “It is tough everywhere; many people are still carrying big debt burdens from COVID and the support functions that were available, including enhanced leverage from banks. I don’t think anyone is superpositive, or happy, if they are being truthful because it is definitely tougher than it was three years ago, but there is an acceptance that this is ‘the new normal’.

TALKING THE SECTOR UP This makes BOSS Federation – of which Simon is chair – even more important for businesses in the sector. “Our purpose is to connect members for a brighter future,” he says. “Our vision is to have many more members - deeper penetration into member companies - so we have more than just the principle of a company engaging with our services, and our networking, events and knowledge–sharing - we have a brand that is seen as the custodian of our sector.”

Part of this is promoting the sector and extolling its virtues – not only what it does, but how good it is to work in. “Our sector is often talked down,” Simon says. “I also work in other sectors, and for a sector that has done and embraced a lot of change, that has had a lot of challenges thrown at it and has survived, and has a very supportive, but smart, commercial culture, we talk it down a bit. But I am very proud to be chairman of the Federation, and proud to have been acting in the sector for the past 15 years. I think BOSS should do more to celebrate our sector because it has a lot going for it.”

Simon adds that people, in general, engage with their work tools in great depth, whether that is a certain type of pen, pencil, writing pad or laptop, and they spend a huge amount of time working with these things. “Your work tools are incredibly important, and people engage with them, but some of them are not seen as ‘sexy’ whereas products others might be, be they business products or work products. This is one of the reasons we talk it down.”

This image can be shaken off, and to do so will require – those words again – listening and learning.

EMBRACING THE NEXT GENERATION “We need to shake off a little bit of a lethargic attitude to change and embrace the next generation. One of the exciting things we saw in business culture as a whole during the pandemic was a much better understanding of mental health and its importance in productivity in both life and work, This was spearheaded by the generation that are yet to run companies in the sector - those who do currently run companies - a slightly older cohort - needed some educating.

“To keep the industry reinventing itself, and maintaining its resilience, we need to look to younger cohorts who have a better understanding of what is going to happen next. Attracting and developing the next generation is critical to the future success and resilience of our sector.

“Millennials, Gen Z, whoever – the younger cohorts – how do we attract them? We should put initiatives into our sector that deliver what they want - and they want different things to the older generations. We can compete with other sectors because what those generations want isn’t necessarily about scale or money, it is more about social proof and other factors. We are quite an emotionally intelligent sector, so we ought to be able to do that.”

If that can be done, then it will help the sector to navigate the tough times ahead. Simon believes there will be more consolidation coming as a result – and, as it has done in the past, the sector will evolve and thrive.

As long as people keep on listening and learning.