Vol 96 Issue 1 by My Office

shop sa Vol 96 Issue 1

The Official Magazine of the Stationery, Home and Office Products Association

Stationery highpoints and trends for 2012

Back to basics for school and office Private label debate How to sellâ&#x20AC;Ś School bags

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volume 96 - issue 1

shop-sa Magazine is the official magazine of the Southern African Association for Stationery, Home and Office Products. It is read by over 30 000 buyers and sellers of stationery and office products each month. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Eugene Kleynhans - eugene@shop-sa.co.za EDITOR Mercédes Westbrook - mercedes@shop-sa.co.za

In this issue 14

SUB EDITOR Lisa Dewberry - lisa@shop-sa.co.za DESIGN & LAYOUT Neil Caetano - neil@shop-sa.co.za

ADVERTISING AND MEMBERSHIP Trish Swanepoel - trish@shop-sa.co.za NATIONAL OFFICE Financial Controller: Bill André Events and Regions: David Nkabinde New Membership: Rachel Skink Administration: Anna-Marie West Reception: Ruth Montsho BOARD OF DIRECTORS Chairman: Mojaki Finger, Commercial Director - BidPaperPlus Deputy: Debi O’Carroll Weber, Divisional Buying Manager, CNA Treasurer: Toni Harman, Financial Director - SSC Allan Thompson: Managing Director, Kolok Unlimited Baron Combrinck: National Sales Manager, Interstat Bill Bayley: Managing Director, Rexel Office Products Dave Jameson: Regional Manager, Antalis SA Debbie O’Connor: Sales and Marketing Director, Parrot Products (Pty) Ltd Helen Goodson: National Brands Manager, Redfern Print Services Herman Botha: Group General Manager, PNA Imtiaz Bham: General Manager, Bhams Stationers James Sibeko: Managing Member, Jabatha Paper & Stationery Ryan Bidgood: CEO, Office National Sakhile Dlamini : Managing Director, Thuthukani Paper (Pty) Ltd Wessel Germishuizen: Managing Director, Libri Stationers

featured DEBATE FORUM The private labels debate.

SA MARKET HIGHLIGHTS Highlights sweeping the industry.

30 TECH NEWS by Willie Strydom How to manage electronic data.

sales advice

CONTACT US PO Box 3226, Parklands, 2121 132 Jan Smuts Ave, Parklands. Tel: +27 (0)11 880 1147 Fax: +27 (0)11 880 1677 Email: info@shop-sa.co.za Website: www.shop-sa.co.za

Back to basics by Aki Kalliatakis The basics of business.

CONTRIBUTIONS Letters and editorial contributions are welcomed and should be addressed to the editor at editor@shop-sa.co.za. Publication cannot be guaranteed and is subject to space and the editor’s discretion. THE LEGAL BIT Whilst every effort is made to ensure accuracy the publisher and editor cannot accept responsibility for supplied material. The opinions of contributors are not necessarily those of shop-sa. Copyright is strictly reserved and no part of this magazine may be reproduced in whole or in part without the written permission of the publisher.

retail advice

association

IMPULSE VS PLANNED PURCHASES 22 What kind of shopper do you want to attract!

COMPANY PROFILE: OFFICE ACTIVE 28

ON THE ROAD 34 by Stuart Johnston A pick up vehicle for under R50k. DEBT ALERT 40 by Lauren Orritt How information sharing can assist your business.

ASSOCIATION NEWS

Member news and updates. SHOP-SA EVENTS 41 Recent and upcoming events. NEW MEMBER APPROVALS

in every issue

lifestyle BOOK & CD REVIEWS

The growth of Office Active.

EDITOR’S WELCOME

GOOD TO GREAT 14 by Gavin Moffat What it takes for company to success.

PERSONABILITY 36 Meet Anthony West, national sales and marketing manager, Freedom Stationery.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

CRIME ALERT

USING SENSORY EXPERIENCE TO SELL 16 Marketing megatrend in 2012.

news

PRODUCT SHOWCASE

HOW TO SELL . . . SCHOOL BAGS 26 How to sell and market school bags.

BUSINESS NEWS

GREEN DOES MATTER

BUYERS GUIDE An eco news update.

Stationery sponsored by

PUNCHLINE Caption competition kindly sponsored by Rexel.

47 60 64

Office paper sponsored by

Member of the Audit Bureau of Circulation PRINTED BY Colorpress (pty) ltd. - printed on Hi-Q paper supplied by Antalis

shopsa magazine

Vol 96 - Issue 1

Value-add:

shop-sa helps shift slow-moving and excess stock As promised in previous editions of this magazine, we at shop-sa are determined to offer our members value for money.

lthough we remain on the brink of launching a new face-changing web platform that will add substantial value to members, we have in the interim created a facility on our recently updated shop-sa website www.shop-sa.co.za to market slow-moving and excess stock to fellow industry members.

Cash flow is critical in every business and slow moving stock is its’ nemeses. Through the conduit of shop-sa, we can now assist members to convert this type of stock problem into valuable cash. Shop-sa will publish the seller’s item(s) on the website reflecting (among other details) comprehensive product descriptions, conditions, quantities and current asking prices. It will not publish the seller’s name. On a minute by minute basis, both sellers and buyers will see the quantities booked and balances remaining. Sellers can reduce the asking price at any time (while stock remains available) and buyers will only pay the last published price. Only when the sale is concluded, will the seller be issued with the name(s) of the buyer(s) who will then conclude the transaction between them. shop-sa will command a commission payment subject to the extent of anticipated administration, marketing and involvement of each deal. This will be negotiated between both parties prior to listing. Whilst we will only allow members of shop-sa to purchase any such deals, we will allow non-members to sell their stock through this medium. Non-member sellers however, will be compelled to pay a listing fee as well as commission. Please note, shop-sa will be extremely sensitive about the possibility of ‘dumping’ and other negative influences this facility could create in our industry. It reserves the right to refrain or www.shop-sa.co.za

withdraw from any listed products where it deems negative consequences could materialise. Yes, finally it is becoming increasingly beneficial to be a shopsa member and believe me, we have only just started adding true value to our member’s lives. We believe there is enormous potential for this trading platform, however we do appeal for patience in this beta stage. It is only our members who can truly make this a success and create the benefits that our industry can most certainly do with at present. We appeal to you as sellers to list your slow-moving stock with us immediately and to you as prospective buyers to keep a daily, vigilant eye out for these deals. The more attractive the trading price, the quicker sales will transpire and this may be of great benefit to buyers who will be able to enjoy greater margins. This facility is available for the complete range of products within our industry. Office machinery, computer hardware, furniture, computer consumables, specialised files and cabinets, printers and of course stationery products can all be marketed through this platform. I have no doubt our industry is housing tens of millions of Rands worth of slow-moving and excess stock. Cash is far more valuable than shelves full of dusty products that stare at you daily and rapidly diminish in value. Pick up your phone, contact Trish Swanepoel or myself immediately and we will travel the earth to help you. We want to make a difference.

ns a h n y e l K Eugene

Yours sincerely,

Executive director of shop-sa. 011 880 1147 shopsa magazine

letters to the editor

readers think... Have your say, be it praise or constructive criticism. Write to editor@shop-sa.co.za with Letter to the Editor in the subject line or post to PO Box 3226, Parklands, 2121. High praise

Crime investigation follow-up

I’m the sales manager at Jetline in Midrand and recently received a copy of the shop-sa magazine. It has been one of the best ‘trade’ magazines I’ve read in a long, long time. The layout is clean and it is well written. The featured articles are superb. They are relevant and easy to action after being absorbed. The buyers guide is really useful. You’ve hit this prospect between the eyes! I’m not sure from which database you got our postal address, but it has worked and I’m excited to see what you have in the next edition. Stacey, Jetline Midrand

One always reads that criminal charges are being investigated or pursued in the Crime Alert pages or emailers. We never read the success stories of these investigations or the facts and consequences of these investigations. It would really be nice to know that Mr or Mrs XYZ have been arrested or apprehended. Fakir Mayet (Baboo), Stadex Stationery

Website response Thank you for the wonderful news about the updated shop-sa website, providing online access to the latest edition of the shop-sa magazine. This is truly a fantastic piece of work, thank you for marketing Kolok. I found ‘Managing the retail risk’ a very appropriate and excellent article. Well done to Mercédes and her team. In my opinion, shop-sa is at a level we have never achieved before. Well done to the entire team and keep up the excellent work. Allan Thompson, Kolok

KZN Year End Function a success Thank you to David Nkabinde for organising the KZN infotainment year end function. We thoroughly enjoyed the talk by Selena Govindsamy, she was informative, interesting and entertaining! Ingrid Portmann, Prontaprint

Editor’s request for giveaway prizes shop-sa is looking for product prizes and hamper giveaways to run in our pages in both the shop-sa member magazine and the My Office consumer magazine. Should you have old or excess stock that we can use as prizes or giveaways in return for like-value promotional space, please contact Mercédes on 011 880 1147 or mercedes@shop-sa.co.za. Your assistance would be greatly appreciated.

WIN!

Tell us what you think... the best letter to the editor wins a Parker Pen Realto valued at R1 000 courtesy of Silveray Statmark Company.

Thank you David Nkabinda Many thanks to David Nkabinda for a great evening - we definitely learnt a lot from the Infotainment talk. I am also glad I got to meet David after so many emails and put a face to the name. I can’t wait to see the photos in the December issue of shop-sa magazine. We look forward to shop-sa moving forward. Thea Jost, CMYK Industries

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Last Month’s Winner Winner of a Parker Pen Realto valued at R1 000 for the best letter to the editor is Paul Naidoo of A-Z Trading. Vol 96 - Issue 1

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business news Local procurement increases In November leaders of business, government and organised labour signed an accord which set a target to procure at least 75% of supplies from locallybased companies to protect and create jobs and enterprises. There were 15 companies with a combined annual turnover of about R350 billion that pledged their support in the accord. Source: Tatler Reporter 10/11/11.

Prevent business risk by knowing traffic laws

on an organisation is the loss of personnel due to funds, time and resources needing to be invested in locating and training new staff members. CCMA cases will also be probable if staff is not adequately trained on the legislation. Vehicles with operator cards not complying with roadworthy standards can be removed off the road and in some cases the entire fleet can be grounded and the proxy may be prosecuted in conjunction with the Criminal Procedures Act for non-compliance to AARTO. Traffic fines not dealt with correctly will result in the inability to renew PDP’s, vehicles’ licenses, drivers’ licenses and fine values will be escalated three-fold. Educate yourself and keep your licence by logging onto www.aarto.co.za or attend one of the AARTO seminars at www.sasm.co.za.

E-tailer goes mobile

The new Adjudication of Road Traffic Offence (AARTO) legislation, a demerit points system introduced in July, to penalise drivers and operators who are habitual offenders, may expose companies to huge business risk. Simply through directors, staff and stakeholders of companies not understanding the new AARTO legislation, they can be penalised with traffic fines leading to criminal records, international travel being limited and business opportunities affected. The biggest effect the AARTO legislation will have

shopsa magazine

Shoplet.com, a US office supplies e-tailer, launched a mobile version of its website in October. Shoplet has partnered with MyBuys, a technology provider, to develop the site which took less than six months from conception to launch. The mobile site is a full version of the main Shoplet.com website rather than an operating systemspecific application. Management at the company say the objective was to create a mobile site that will operate using all brands of smartphones and allows all features of the main website. “While m-commerce has been a big hit in the consumer channel, B2B companies cannot ignore the mobile platform anymore and we see mobile as an opportunity to provide added value to their customers,” says Tony Ellison, CEO for Shoplet. He says that m-commerce eliminates the gap between the time a need is recognised and when a product is ordered. “This development will make the

process of purchasing the products that you need to run your businesses as simple as possible. No longer will you need to be in your office to get everything that you need for your business,” says Ellison.

New look for OPI

Office Products International (OPI) unveiled its new brand marking the company’s 20th birthday in November and will continue to keep the international trade community engaged with objective news and insight into rapidly changing markets in the stationery industry. The group, which is more than just a product magazine, is the trusted global news source for the modern business solutions industry in the digital age and has cultivated a community where information and in-depth analysis of key developments affecting the industry are shared daily through a variety of media forms including its daily eNews emails, monthly magazines, special publications and live events. “OPI actively brings companies and individuals together within the industry, connecting and collaborating, not just reporting about the industry,” says Steve Hilleard, CEO of OPI. shop-sa congratulates OPI on its’ new branding and hopes to continue finding business synergies with OPI and its global markets going forward. m Vol 96 - Issue 1

Auto Feed Shredders Stack, Shut and Go! 2012

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debate forum

The future of private labels With more private labels populating the retail shelves and competing against branded products, what is the benefit of the private label to the retailer and ultimately, what is the perception of the consumer? Definition of private label: Products developed, controlled and marketed by a retailer or supplier, who gets their goods made by a contract manufacturer under their own label and is made available only for sale by that retailer. Also called store brands.

ften perceived as a cheaper alternative to a national brand, private labels have achieved significant growth and market share in recent years, indicative of the consumer’s focus on price comparisons and reduced budgets. While they once might have been viewed as a ‘low-cost imitation’ of branded products, private labels are establishing themselves as a brand in their own right and are wooing market share away from traditional branded products due to the popularity of their benefits to retailers and customers. While ‘less expensive’ may often be perceived as ‘lower quality’, private labels are starting to compete in their own right, improving product quality and performing the same way as branded products. The result is that often the only things separating one product from the other is the name on the label and the price tag, with some private labels rising close to the level of influence and ability of the competitive brand, even if they initially started out as the inferior, second-tier price alternative. Private label goods are generally cheaper to produce than branded goods, with the cost difference large enough that retailers

shopsa magazine

can offer customers lower prices while still making higher profit margins themselves. Unfortunately, while the retailer is able to control the pricing of the product, they often make the error of selling the product at overly discounted prices resulting in less rand value gross margin generation than enjoyed by the original brand name due to confusion between rand value and percentage calculations, which ultimately creates their demise. Private labels also allow retailers to own and manage marketing campaigns, create a personalised image, control production, marketing, distribution and profits and drive customers’ preference towards their private label products – all providing an edge over other brands that have not done their financial calculations correctly. Private labels have become increasingly more accepted by the consumer and are seen as acceptable alternatives to national brands. Since they are unique to one retail chain or distribution outlet, customers are still offered the opportunity to grow a sense of brand loyalty, giving retailers an advantage over competitors. Where does this leave branded products which have to compete against their own customers (the retailers) for market share, while continuing to doll out marketing spend to keep brand awareness on a national scale? These products benefit in product recognition. Almost everyone recognises the names

of leading nationally branded stationery products and often brand names become the generic description for all products in that field eg: Pritt is used as a term for glue stick. This is the direct result of millions of rands spent advertising these products, making them easier for the retailer to sell. Due to branded products generally being representative of consistent quality control, a buyer interviewing a private label salesman and a national brand salesman is likely to have more confidence in the latter, despite all aspects of their presentations being equal. Another factor that comes into play is a constant and consistent supply from local wholesalers and suppliers with shorter lead times on ordering. Brand owners competing with private labels are increasingly seeing the need to offer a combination of quality and price that is a value proposition. Interestingly, in certain markets, some manufacturers have begun producing private label goods together with their branded products to counter the impact of a decrease in demand for branded products. What type of threat does the growing private label industry represent to the branded product? What will keep private labels from taking over entirely? Will the cost to market become too high for branded goods, squeezing brand product owners out of business? Send your views to editor@shop-sa.co.za. Anonymous submissions accepted. m Vol 96 - Issue 1

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eco news

Green does matter With almost all businesses worldwide hopping on the green train in 2011, the year 2012 promises to be even more ecofriendly than years gone by. Shredders become energy smart Elcoman developed environmentallyfriendly technology known as Energy Smart for all Kobra shredders in November. Energy Smart saves energy and protects the environment by reducing emissions responsible for global warming. The energy consumption of the paper shredder is managed by software which operates in conjunction with illuminated optical indicators located on top of the machine. A Kobra shredder requires electrical energy only during use. Once the shredding operation is completed, the system management software automatically activates the stand-by zero consumption ‘Energy Smart mode’ making sure no more electrical energy is drained from the power source. Every shredder equipped with the system can save up to about R220 a year in electrical energy and it will reduce the carbon dioxide that would have been introduced

into the atmosphere by approximately 65 kgs compared to traditional shredders. These models also feature a removable environmentally friendly double waste bin, specially designed to allow for separation of paper from shredded CDs, DVDs and credit cards.

Paper group improves green efficiencies Over the past five years significant work has been undertaken by Mondi, a paper and packaging group, to address environmental impacts of their products. They have improved energy efficiency at pulp and paper plants, accelerated reductions in carbon dioxide emissions and have ensured maximum recycling. Carbon dioxide emissions have been reduced by about 23% since 2004 and the Mondi Recycling business unit is the largest paper recycler in South Africa, with a 40% market share. The recycling unit supplies the three Mondi Packaging mills and their newsprint mill with high-quality recovered fibre and with more than 95% of the company’s products made of fibre-based materials, every sheet of paper and corrugated container manufactured is easily recycled. Their recycling activities have

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eco news benefits including saved landfill space, a reduction in the number of trees cut for paper manufacturing, lower energy usage, reduced coal and electricity based emissions along with cleaner production processes.

Brewery uses less water for beer The South African Breweries (SAB) is tackling water scarcity and reducing their carbon footprint by brewing more beer using less water, making their water source for brewing and bottling available to local communities and reducing annual electrical consumption in breweries. The company used five litres of water to brew one litre of beer a few years ago, however with investment in new technology, the current status is less than four litres of water per litre of beer. They are committed to lower this ratio to three and a half litres of water per litre of beer by 2015. The company is also exploring how water from the Wilge River (which transfers water from Katse Dam to the Vaal River) and provides the bulk of their water for brewing and bottling, can be made available to local communities. They teamed up with the Water Trust to clear debris in the river and alien species growing on the banks and together with the provincial Water Affairs Department have employed 20 local people to keep the water in good condition. The SAB has also reduced its annual electricity consumption in breweries by 17% since 2008.

Office products manufacturer launchs ecofriendly range In an effort to maximise their environmental message of remaining 100% environmental and conscience free, Rexel, an office products manufacturer, recently launched their range of bamboo accessories. The bamboo plant which is strong and resilient makes these products a practical option to organise stationery in a way not harmful to the environment.

Rexel has also introduced a range of eco-friendly desk accessories and filing products to ensure all professionals in the workplace have no excuse for going green. From the Ecodesk desk sorter, letter try, magazine rack, pen cup to the Eco-filing folder and document wallet, these products are all 100% recyclable. The products are designed for quick and easy access of writing instruments and documents.

Electronics designer ensures toxic free products A major environmental challenge facing industry today is the presence of toxic substances such as arsenic, brominated flame retardants (BFRs), mercury, phthalates and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in products. Apple’s designers and engineers have in the past 10 years pioneered the development of smaller, thinner and lighter products. As their products become more powerful, they’re using less material to produce and generating fewer carbon emissions. Although most countries still allow the use of these substances, the company has worked with manufacturing partners to eliminate these toxins from products. Every product they sell is free of BFRs and other harmful toxins and they’ve also qualified thousands of components to be free of elemental bromine and chlorine. In addition, every display they make, whether it’s built into a system or available as a standalone, features mercuryfree LED backlighting and arsenic-free glass. 

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marketing savvy Acknowledgment Aki Kalliatakis is a professional speaker and author. He started his own small management consultancy in 1989 and is involved in assisting companies to implement a customer satisfaction improvement strategy called ‘Delight Your Customers!’ For information on his books and DVDs visit www.DelightYourCustomer.co.za.

Back to School? Back to Office? No, Back to Basics... I’m willing to bet your business is experiencing pain right now during this recession. Businesses around the world are in turmoil, stock markets in freefall and we’re not sure what the new year will bring. But with us about to experience Christmas and with time to look to the future, I am amazed by how few businesses are focusing on the single factor to keep them out of trouble – their customers.

If there has been any thought of creating customer loyalty during tough times, then I certainly haven’t seen much evidence in the places where I spend my money. On the contrary, I hear excuses from even my most favourite companies telling me about how they are bleeding and that I have to understand ‘some services will be limited while we try to help you’ - What utter rubbish, is my response.

shopsa magazine

For example, my previous photocopier company lost a 17 year contract because they unilaterally decided to terminate a four hour breakdown service, for which I have paid every month since inception – because they had retrenched staff and were under pressure. My favourite (expensive) grocery store decided that since business was a bit down and money so tight for consumers, it would be okay to provide poor quality, battered fruit hidden underneath the healthy

pieces, in the same package. The leading producer of tomato sauce in South Africa decided they would make the bottles smaller without reducing the prices. The company that printed all of my six books, retrenched the sales representatives who used to visit me at the office, in favour of only telephonic contact with a senior surviving director, whose sole criteria for dealing with me was to give the minimal deal for the maximum price. For many of my suppliers, it’s impossible to get Vol 96 - Issue 1

marketing savvy through to speak to a live human being, instead I have to speak to something called a ‘Web Bot.’ The worst one: I recently had a really disappointing experience on one of my favourite airlines, and this was their response: “As with any business, our company is always looking at ways to maximise our business operations and from time to time we are required to take decisions in order to remain competitive in the airline industry that exists today. Whilst we recognise these changes may cause disappointment to some of our members, I’m sure you’ll understand our need to do so.” I don’t care! These excuses are pathetic. After all, isn’t this precisely the time to look after your customers even better than ever, to surprise them a little once in a while, and to find ways to add value without breaking the bank? Isn’t this the time to make sure that if customers are still buying stuff – then they had better be buying it from you, not your rivals? I also run my own business and I understand the reality of the recession. But I have to tell you that in times like these I have made it a priority to give our customers the best possible experience we possibly can - precisely so that we don’t fall into the same trap that my suppliers have collectively fallen into. The very last thing we want to do is add to their numerous disappointments with unilateral decisions that affect them adversely - especially by hiding behind ‘new policies and rules’ that have been created for our benefit, not theirs. And when the recession is over, whenever that will be, we will have survived and be ready to take off like a rocket again. Those businesses where I feel ripped off have become a cynical post-script in my customer experiences, just another sad lesson to be shared in my seminars. They are like a bunch of ‘has been’ battered boxers in the numerous disappointing experiences of spending my money. No wonder people around the world are so cynical about business and its leaders. If you cannot rely on the companies that you have been loyal to for so many years to bring a smile to your face, who can you trust? Now I know what you are saying to yourself: “This is all very well for you Aki, but adding value and surprising customers is expensive and they will shop around for the www.shop-sa.co.za

without making the finance manager grumble? Can we be the first in the world to distinguish ourselves from our rivals and create word of mouth that will leave competitors shell-shocked? The last point is where your major opportunities lie and there are probably hundreds of examples of simple things that will engender customer loyalty such as:

cheapest products anyway.” That will certainly be true if you think that adding value means giving away cars or sending customers on holiday to Mauritius or having some kind of loyalty programme. The reality is that surprising your customers and adding value doesn’t have to cost you much, if anything at all. Here are three questions that you should be asking every day: • Do we get the basics incredibly right or have we slipped into performance that results in trimmed-down quality, reduced service delivery and diminished responsiveness towards our precious customers? • What do we do too much of in our business that adds little or no value for our customers and that we need to reduce or kill altogether? (Challenging all of these can save you time, money and other resources that can be used to add value and even reduce prices without losing profitability.) • What innovative things can we introduce that add value for customers

• Building better relationships with customers - by saying thank you more often and with more authenticity, by talking to them and by finding out a little bit more about their needs; • Bringing a smile to their lips by making them laugh or entertaining them or talking about things important to them, like their families or holidays; • Making them look good with people important to them and paying them compliments; • S h a r i n g n o r m a l l y - i n a c c e s s i b l e information to give them an advantage over their rivals; • Training them and their staff to be better at what they do; • Introducing them to other people in your network that can help or support them. Consider this finding – McKinsey, advisor to many of the world’s most influential businesses and institutions, followed over 1 000 companies over an 18 year period, including the last two recessions and found that companies that came out in the top-quarter after the previous recessions had significantly increased their spending on innovation, marketing and sales during the recession. In the case of innovation, they had spent 22% more than less successful companies. There are dozens of possibilities for doing something spectacular for your customers and they can occur at many stages of your relationship with them. Use this quiet time to decide what you want to do… 

Opportunity We have managed to identify at least 82 ways of doing so in my book Rugby on Saturday is Just Not Enough. If you write to us at customer@icon.co.za we’ll send you a complete list. -Aki Kalliatakis

shopsa magazine

market savvy Acknowledgment

Good to Great

Gavin Moffat is the strategic director at Puruma Business Communications as well as the catalyst and managing director at join. the.dots. Contact gavin@puruma.com or www.twitter.com/gavinmoffat.

It was a number of years ago that I heard of the concept of Good to Great. In this particular context it relates to companies and talks about how you should never accept good as a measure of success but should always strive to be great.

have however only recently read the book by Jim Collins called Good to Great. What an eye opener. His concept is one that we can all grasp. In order for a company to be great it needs to be made up of the sum of its parts, all doing their bit as one big organism that is dependent on all its parts. If one part fails the organism will perish (the organism analogy is my own).

Obviously you need to have the appropriate person in charge and contrary to common wisdom this is not the Lee Ioccoca or Donald Trump type leader that makes a good company great. Collins observes that this type of leader, very often leading from ego may indeed bring excellent short term gains for the business but only in exceptional cases do they create a company that is able to outlive their departure, in other words a business success that is sustainable. They are often dictatorial and seek to be surrounded by intelligent, but essentially ‘yes’ people. This makes me believe that the awesomely successful Apple under Steve Jobs was just that – awesome under Steve Jobs. With his passing, the business is on a path to failure. Not overnight you understand. These things take time. Five to 10 years. The caveat is if they don’t seek out the

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type of person that Jim Collins refers to as a level five leader who ‘builds enduring greatness through a paradoxical blend of personal humility and professional will.’ So not only do you have to be a leader who can run a successful business, introduce great new products, change industries and paradigms but they have to do it in a humble and professional manner? So it would seem. How many of us can say that we view what we do with a great passion? That we wake up each day wondering what we are going to do to make our company, our employer, greater than it was yesterday? I would hazard a guess that this is not many of us. I suppose that starts with thinking about whether we want to live a life that is mediocre, where we make little impact and leave nothing behind but a bunch of stuff that we had for a while; or whether we would like to make a difference, however small, however often we can to the world around us. A mentor once told me that he saw little point in working each day, for however many hours, and not being able to see the difference he was making - whether it was being able to hold off on retrenchments a little further into the recession, ensuring each of his employees had access to higher education initiatives or making sure there was always food for those who could not afford it. It was not a socialist ideal that he espoused. It was his way of saying, I have been fortunate; I’d like to ensure that others can be too. So as we enter December, in these very tough economic times, my wish for you is that you believe that you can be great, your company can be great and that you take steps each day toward living your life in a way that is meaningful, purposeful and adds value to whatever and whomever you touch.  Vol 96 - Issue 1

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market savvy

Using sensory experience to sell Business owners take note: A megatrend, where consumers are seeking experiences instead of products and services only, is set to take retailing by storm in 2012.

ne of the top 10 trends shaping brands in 2012 which holds the key to current shifts in consumer attitudes and behaviour is the megatrend of ‘ freedom and discovery.’ This trend acknowledges consumers are increasingly seeking experiences rather than just basic products and services. This is according to Dr Inka Crosswaite, cultural insights specialist for Added Value, a marketing insight consultancy, who says the drivers of change regarding this megatrend include the desire to explore physicality and push the boundaries of physical representation and experience. “Individuals want new sensations and experiences that challenge the way they think and embrace all their senses. South Africans are looking for sources of instant pleasure in their everyday lives. They enjoy experimenting and accessibility of instant satisfaction through technology, such as 3D cinema and gaming platforms, is fuelling greater demand. There’s a desire for experiences which awaken the senses in an innovative way,” she says. Dr Crosswaite adds that key consumer

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values derived from this trend are discovery, challenge, curiosity, passion and adventure. “Marketers should consider creating a ritual that enhances a strong sensory experience for consumers, explore packaging that appeals to more than the visual sense and should organise events that bring to life the brand’s positioning in a multi-sensory way,” she says. Graham Leigh, director of HKLM, a brand and communications design consultancy, says marketers want consumers to be in love with brands they build and aim for consumers to become deeply committed long term. However, this emotional and intellectual connection depends on sensory gratification and many brands still rely on visual stimulation as their only engagement with their audience. He says millions are spent on consultants, colour schemes, logos, layout and testing, but not enough goes into providing sensory stimuli that will emotionally engage the audience and influence buying behavior. “Successful brands build long-term relationships with their followers, which is never possible on a one-dimensional level. Love at first sight can only take place if sensory fulfillment follows. Real relationships fulfill all senses and in the same way relationships erode when there are gaps between expectation and fulfillment, so too will brand equity,” says Leigh.

He adds there is huge opportunity to tap into senses to drive consumers’ purchasing decisions and brand-builders need to be more aggressive in delivering the whole sensory package in-store. Retail brands offering a more complete sensory package will be perceived as offering greater value and will command a premium for doing so.

Other trends taking over Dr Crosswaite says other megatrends particularly relevant for marketing in South Africa in 2012 are ‘more global, more local’, ‘identity blur’, ‘wired world’ and ‘take a stand’. ‘More global, more local’ concerns globalisation with people starting to resist global culture and looking to the local and familiar for inspiration. ‘Identity blur’ is about gender and life-stages beginning to blur. ‘Wired world’ relates to technology entering all parts of a person’s life allowing them to manage their lives 24/7. ‘Take a stand’ concerns the move from cynicism to a new found determination and drive for new solutions to past problems. “Examining these megatrends allows marketers a wealth of information revealing how to position brands effectively and allowing them to shape changes in future, rather than just react to them. Getting it wrong might not mean failure, but will restrict the brand’s ability to resonate with society,” she says. m Vol 96 - Issue 1

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market highlights

2011 - 2012

Market highlights and trends

After a bumpy year, most are happy to welcome in 2012 simply because it might bring something different to what has gone before. While there are no guarantees for the future, a glance back on 2011 and half an ear on predicted trends ahead will lay the ground for basic business concepts to be expected in the new year. 18

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market highlights

ailroom and Packaging: The meaning of the word ‘mail’ has changed drastically over just a few short years. For the older generation it still speaks of envelopes, cards, quality writing paper and stamps. For the younger generation, mail represents an abbreviated electronic note, often featuring its own languagestyle that is typed in seconds and sent with the push of a button either from a smart phone, Ipad or laptop. With a reported 3.1 billion email accounts in use around the globe, which is expected to rise to over 4 billion by 2015, technology is being harnessed to both develop and market product ranges. What is surprising is that both markets seem to co-exist and traditional mailing has held its ground despite online billing and digital file transfers. Business invoice envelopes bearing a ‘due’ stamp still arrive and mass mailers continue to fill postal boxes, no more so than at annual highlights such as Christmas and Valentines which still meet ingrained traditional requirements. In fact, the South African Post Office Group has posted strong financial results for the financial year ending March 2011, achieving a 3% increase in revenue to R5.8 billion although this could be due to price increases. Packaging on the other hand has shown a growth relative to the impact of technology as consumers gain access to wider markets over the internet and increasingly make use of online shopping on sites such as Amazon, Bid or Buy or eBay. Proximity is no longer a requirement and consumers have access to world markets in their search for specific products or better pricing creating a knock-on effect with the packaging of products for courier. Traditional print specialists are also finding that with a decline in print reading material such as magazines as impacted by technology, there is a diversification into product packaging and marketing opportunities. Stamps: A surge in innovation has been the response of the marking and stamping industry to global economic turbulence. Where others have gone quiet, the stamp industry has launched three new line innovations – that of antibacterial products, green products and technological systems. www.shop-sa.co.za

Colop introduced its built-in Microban antibacterial stamp range in September 2010 and its special edition liquid wood stamps, which are 100% biodegradable, at Paperworld in Frankfurt. Trodat has focussed on using technology to improve its relationship with its distributors and end-users and is seeing the financial benefits in electronic orders and online marketing to its resellers and customers. Crime: Office products are the third most counterfeited item (9%), behind cigarettes (34%) and household products (14.5%) globally, with China being the main source of counterfeit products. Locally, fraudulent orders continue to plague companies when counter-check measures are not applied along with the requisite security procedures. Crime rings are spreading their modus operandi across borders and the Metropolitan Police in London, as part of a project called Genesius is raising awareness of criminals obtaining equipment and supplies from the printing industry to produce false identity documents. The scheme has been transferred to the USA, where the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) have set up their own ‘Operation Genesius’ and there is communication into South Africa for a similar operation as criminals, finding it hard to get supplies in one country, are moving on to target another ‘easier’ countries. As reported on the OPI website, counterfeit cartridges affect the entire printing industry, and the ultimate victim of this crime is the unsuspecting customer who is paying for a genuine original equipment manufacturer’s (OEM) product but receiving a poorquality alternative that results in reduced equipment performance, low supply yields, poor print standards and toner leakage, which can potentially damage a machine. An OEM initiative is the HP Toner Cartridge Authentication (TCA) free software which works on select HP LaserJet printers to help customers confirm the purchase of original HP toner cartridges. It validates whether the installed cartridge is an original HP LaserJet toner cartridge or an alternative supply, such as a remanufactured, refilled, cloned or counterfeit cartridge. If a user receives a

security notification when they believe they have purchased an original HP cartridge, they will be directed to HP’s anti-counterfeit website to report it. Product Catalogues: With the advent of technological advancements and cost savings brought about by the web, the future of costly print catalogues has come under the spotlight. While suppliers need to make the right information available to the right target customer, many don’t have the budget to spread all their products across the entire market spectrum and the correct product placement and advertising in a variety of different catalogues becomes anyone’s best guess. An additional question hangs over the actual number and distribution of the catalogue by a reseller where publishing is not their core business, affecting quality and competitiveness. Top line resellers are finally making the move to web-based catalogues which offer cheaper, more quantified marketing channels without affecting quality. For the smaller reseller without the means to launch their own website or digital product catalogue, shopsa – the industry association standard is effecting an industry-based digital offering that will include all suppliers, resellers and products. Spend Behaviour: With markets in slight repair there has been a cautious return to spending on basic categories, with the Back to School and Back to Office period a seasonal boost to kick-start the year. What has changed is that both resellers and end-users are increasingly looking for value having felt the economic pinch and have shaken themselves out of their sleep, become vigilant about their spending habits and are sticking to preferred

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market highlights retailers. This is where quality of service will shore up business going into 2012, with the retention of quality customers. However, quality customer service costs money and is especially difficult to do. Trends already point to more customer selfservice offerings with current examples of self check-in kiosks in airports, self-scanning machines in supermarkets and DIY check out services in hotels already in place. Another shift has been towards larger varieties and offerings within the own-brand value products and uptake from companies willing to put the products to the test against branded products, which will make brand innovation the only way to compete over that of price. Look out for the emerging trend of brand stretch. We have already seen it with bookshops selling coffee, coffee shops selling music, supermarkets selling loans. With consumers getting bored with the same brands in the same places, we will see more ‘pop-up’ retail and ‘limited time only’ products and offers. In the UK, stationer WHSmith sells cooking courses, hot air balloon lessons and Ferrari drive days, further driving the consumer towards experiential shopping.

Laminating and Binding: With the new – although somewhat disparaged – watchword of the ‘paperless office’ not yet a reality, it has produced some paperlight offices with data now being worked, shared, and stored electronically, creating a threat to the laminating and binding sector. The challenge will be to see if both these products can innovate sufficiently

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to co-exist with digital technology. With increasingly short document run lengths, companies are also moving towards high-value, digital presentations and the laminating and binding industry must look to producing a parallel innovative offering, whether by personalisation, tailor-made design or customisation. However, criteria such as affordability will remain high on the agenda along with the product’s ease of use and efficiency. BTS & BTO: While there is debate that the world’s increasing obsession with technology will affect which products are bought during the Back to School and Back to Office trading seasons in the future, current sales are not being affected. With exercise books, exam pads, pencils, ball point pens, glue sticks, files and folders and crayons seeing highest volume turnover in the BTS sector and cartridges, A4 paper, ball point pens, glue sticks and files and folders in the BTO sector, expect to perform well again. What has seen growth in the technology sector however is tablets, interactive whiteboards and digital pens and what is important to remember is that the market is changing, and with it will be changes to marketing strategies that encompass the internet as a source of information and goods and social media campaigns. Presentation at the point of

purchase remains important however and appeals to variants of social status, spending power, educational level, social responsibility, recommendations and advertisements. Filing and Archiving: This sector has seen a steep climb in technological advancement with resources of the internet, cloud-based computing and social networking alongside multi-function printers and scanners revolutionising the modern office. While digital filing allows for cost-efficiencies and environmental endeavours, people still like to print and work with paper when writing or reading documents and a number of industries, such as medical and legal are still required to keep copy documents by law. However there is a steady move to electronic document and records management systems (EDRMS) now offer scan-to-cloud scanners that can easily integrate with the internet and local apps, allowing users to directly scan their documents into the cloud via programs such as Google Docs, Flickr, Evernote, Picnik, Tumblr, Acrobat and iPhoto. Green Environment: Green continues to rule and those companies which have embraced this opportunity of providing green solutions via alternative materials and energy-efficient products to business will have a strong competitive advantage. Value will still be weighed against their green credentials as well as their reduction of waste, that offers additional value beyond its initial purchasing costs. Office Furniture: Just as in the fashion industry, office furniture goes in and out of style, creating fresh seasonal and annual markets. The work environment is also seeing a new philosophy that looks at collaborative versus individual and yet still holds a traditional feel, yet sees an increased demand for performance and results. This has resulted in electrically-wired tables and cut-outs for computer hardware as staff demand easy plug-in for their laptop and other devices. Walls and panel workstations are also less popular as people join together to form communities at work. This is a result of an increase in ‘operational re-organsiation’ (another term for retrenchment) as a result of the continued belt-tightening on spend. As staff numbers and office space reduces we are seeing an added proximity between individuals which is resulting in greater collaboration within the office space. m

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retail savvy

Impulse versus planned purchases Impulse buying happens when you get caught up in the hype of a situation and you buy something without thinking much about it. Planned purchases are characterised by deliberate, thoughtful search and evaluation that normally results in rational, accurate and enhanced decisions. Which type of shopper do you want to attract?

andy walked the aisle, she had a lot on her mind and wasn’t really moving towards anything specific. The shiny pink plastic of the Barbie school bag caught her eye on the right. Immediately she thought of Cleo, who had just this morning complained of a hole in her current bag. Picking it up, she smiled to herself as she turned it over in her hands imagining the excitement on Cleo’s face when she brought it home. Then she remembered Byron would be upset if he didn’t get a new bag as well. Raising her head she began looking for a Ben 10 school bag that would delight his new craze.

We have all been in Sandy’s position at some point. Felt the hedonistic spontaneity and excitement that comes with the urge to buy without regard to the consequences of the purchase decision. It almost plays out as an escape from the reality of our lives as we shop for pure pleasure. Then again, we have also all experienced shopping in a more rational and task-related light where a shopping list or budget is clutched tightly in hand.

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retail savvy Research from Determinants of Planned and Impulse Buying: Ben Paul B. Gutierrez tells us that consumers buying more frequently purchased products are more likely to plan their purchases, while consumers buying less frequently purchased products (longer lag time between purchases) are more likely to have impulsive purchases. It becomes a meaningful exercise to review your stock offerings and categorise them accordingly. For example, placing frequently purchased goods such as photo-copier paper and pens at the back of the store with impulse items along the aisles. Impulse items may be new products, samples or well-established products at unexpected low prices and situations that most play on shoppers impulsiveness include: items on sale tables that advertise ‘huge bargains’ or ‘10% off all items’ or the enticement of announcements that something is half price for the next five minutes. This is because research suggests that emotions and feelings play a decisive role in purchasing and are triggered by seeing the product or upon exposure to a well-crafted promotional message. As with Sandy, when we anticipate buying something, the pleasure center of the brain, the nucleus accumbens, is activated. We begin picturing ourselves in possession of a product and visualising ourselves using it. We start to build neural pathways that reinforce what it would be like to have the product. However, relative to this is the brain also has a shut-off mechanism. If the price is excessive, a part of the brain known as the insula is activated to balance gains versus losses, such as is the product worth the price? If not the medial prefrontal cortex, begins shutting down and we literally put the purchase out of our mind because the price is more than we’re willing to pay. So ultimately it is price and value that remain key drivers in impulse purchases.

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Planned purchases When a store environment is familiar to a shopper, planned purchases tend to occur more often, and they are more able to compare brands when making specific choices. An added value to the process would be the influence of a friendly and helpful consultant or store assistant. While lower income households, educated people and males are more likely to plan their purchases, impulse shopping can still come into play. Even when we are in conscious ‘buy mode’ and we have accepted that we have budget available, and we start looking for the product we intended to buy, we often see something we also decide we need, especially in a related category – and because our ‘buying’ mechanism is already activated, we’re already primed to consider purchase. As long as the price is reasonable and doesn’t introduce significant ‘pain’ we’re more likely to purchase additional products in related categories. This is why it’s much more dangerous to shop with credit cards than cash. Credit cards allow us to put off the ‘pain’ that might kick in, letting the nucleus accumbens have its way. When cash runs out, it runs out. It forces us to pay more attention to the ‘pain’.

The power of the modern purchaser According to an intensive South African Consumer Connection System (CCS) survey, conducted for the second year by media agency Carat SA, rich, powerful yet unmarried women have become a formidable commercial force to be reckoned with and are kicking stereotypes in to touch. CCS, a globally recognised tool which assists marketing and media mangers to understand consumers’ interaction with different media channels, says “The single LSM 8-10 woman continues to grow as a market segment. The figures show 73% of women polled aged between 18 and 44 are single and 66% of them work. These women are independent, mostly unwilling to compromise on their lifestyles, and are responsible for a substantial portion of the purchasing decisions made in South Africa,” says Delia van Staden, head of Carat SA’s Insights Unit which spearheads the CCS research in South Africa. Discussing the best medium with which to target this segment, van Staden says, “TV scores the highest in terms of interaction, while radio advertising is noticed and influences this woman’s

decision. Magazines score well on recall and are also highly influential, but the role of shopping mall media is key to her. She notices, recalls, trusts and is influenced to buy the product advertised in this media format.” What this offers is opportunity to influence consumers at point-of-sale with attractive displays, ample variety, and consumer education. When asked specifically about influencers to their purchase, sale, display and price were cited. Some implications for management were identified including the need for marketers and retailers to design shopping environments that reduce the shopping difficulties of their target consumers and return shopping to a pleasurable experience. Long live the shopping malls it seems? m

People make buying decisions that satisfy their needs. Trends tell us that: • Consumers will forever crave the new and exciting experiences promised by the ‘next’ prospect. • Hook into the growing status boost that comes from being savvy and shopping (environmentally) responsibly. • Cash-strapped consumers will embrace creative solutions.

Vol 96 - Issue 1

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school bags

How to sell … School bags The second in a series of sales toolkits, shop-sa offers insight into how best to promote benefits and features when selling school bags.

here are a variety of aspects important in manufacturing school bags, such as size, durability and branding which serve as handy tools in marketing these products. Two trends currently dominating are the increase in sales of orthopedically designed bags and fashion bags.

Important features: Durability is a key feature in school bags as learners throw their bags around and files create tears in the material. It is important to be aware of fabric strength, quality of lining, strength of zippers, metal pullers and supporting clips, the ease at which the sliders move along the zippers and the reinforcements around the weak points of the bag, where straps are stitched to the bag or where there are seams. The fabric of the bag may either be nylon or polyester. Nylon is generally cheaper and not as durable as polyester and is a more popular lower quality alternative. Muhammad Ebrahim, spokesperson for Topmark, importer of bags, says the type of carry is also important to consider, with hand carry bags carried in the hand, backpacks and messenger sling bags carried on the shoulders and trolley bags transported using wheels with the combination carry category offering a choice in transportation methods. Orthopedic padding to ensure children do not damage their backs and reflective film on the straps and front of bags are important safety features. Age appropriate bags: Children need to carry a bag which is the correct scale to their size and should not carry more than a third of their body weight in their bags. “Bags for preschool accommodate small items with many learners using trolley bags or mini single-division backpacks, with a side pocket to accommodate a juice bottle that are light in construction with funky cartoon character prints,” says Ryan Kalk, spokesperson for Elegant Travel Goods, importer and wholesale distributor of bags. Bags for primary school hold items of an A4 size or larger and many junior primary school learners

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use division briefcase backpacks and drawstring backpacks. Senior primary learners opt for larger bags and move into the fashion backpacks, while university learners mainly use casual backpacks or medium-sized sling messenger bag. “As the learner gets older, padded laptop sleeves, organisers and divisions within a compartment become more important. There is the option of adding a division insert into a bag which doesn’t have existing partitions to allow easy differentiation between items,” says Shelby Zimmerman, of Silveray Statmark Company. Strong stitching: Nadine Hirschfield, of Totem bags, a bag manufacturer, says poor workmanship in stitching seams which are not easily seen by the naked eye often result in bags having split seams. Yarns needs to be thick and all stress points should be crossed stitched. Weak points, which include areas where two sections are joined together around the piping or lining, the bottom corners of bags and areas where the straps and handles are attached should be tested by giving them a tug to assess the strength of stitching. Zippers should be dual stitched onto the fabric in two straight lines adjacent to where the zipper and fabric meet. Top trends: The financial crisis has created a trend where parents combine Christmas and Back to School shopping to buy fashionable bags for their child. Mass produced school bags which fall apart in three to six months have saturated the market so customers often select a branded bag as they are looking for a ‘value for money’ product, however this does not necessarily mean these bags are good quality. The print on the bag is a huge selling point, with cartoon characters, surfer themes, geometric 3D prints and gothic fonts most popular. For schools that do not allow branding or fashion prints, suppliers have bags available in base colours of black, navy, bottle green and burgundy with no branding or prints. m Vol 96 - Issue 1

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company profile

Office Active moves ahead The year 2011 saw Office Active moving ahead in leaps and bounds. If their success this year is anything to go by, the group can happily welcome in the new year with anticipation of further expansion on the horizon.

ffice Active, a provider of marketing solutions to office supply companies, are looking forward to a positive 2012 following their success in 2011. This year saw the company acquire a master license from the United Kingdom for an electronic marketing platform in September; the release of an electronic Back to School ordering solution in October; and the achievement of a purchasing target of R3 850 000 at their ‘One in a Million’ dealer and supplier conference in Johannesburg, also in October. Garry Mc Cluskey, director at Office Active, says during 2011 the company’s structure expanded rapidly and in 2012 further developments on the technology side will be released to keep up with electronic trends.

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“The company will undergo a restructure this year to be disclosed in due course and will expand premises and staff to cover the extended services and growth plan,” he says. Office Active and its members also raised R10 000 in October for Stop Hunger Now, an international hunger relief organisation, distributing food to schools and orphanages in need. The money was raised through a cartridge recycling programme, whereby black boxes were distributed to members of Office Active, to collect used cartridges to be re-used in manufacturing instead of filling landfills. This ensured 5 000 meals were given to local under-privileged children. According to Craig Noyle, director at the company, Office Active is unique because of the skills and experience their employees have to offer the stationery industry. “The model of the company is not a prescriptive model. It is flexible and we mould our services to each individual member, offering a true

understanding of resellers needs. We do not visibly disrupt the stationers businesses or remove the independent stationer’s existing relationships but rather enhance trading between resellers and suppliers,” he says. Office Active was founded by Noyle and Mc Cluskey in May 2008 and runs two dealer groups including Office Active and Office Club. They are similar models but Office Active caters for larger independent dealers, while Office Club is for the emerging stationer. Having two dealer groups allows equal opportunity to all stationers instead of only uplifting a few. Mc Cluskey says the company was founded on the basis that there was a clear need for independent stationers who were not part of an existing group or franchise who required marketing tools. “We wanted to explore what ‘keeping independents – independent’ meant. Our members don’t have to change their brand or company logo, keeping the visibility and differential in their own business. They are seen as independent trading businesses although associated with a countrywide group. Our model allows the reseller member to avoid customer confusion when canvassing accounts,” he says. Some of the services offered by the company include individual ordering catalogues, individual printed flyers, per member email marketing, personalised websites with e-commerce solutions and production of marketing material to enhance independent dealers. The company also has a sizeable Back to School programme on the print side. According to Noyle, one of the major challenges facing Office Active is also a challenge facing the industry. “Stationers are fighting for market share and are being forced to cut prices on products due to there being easy access to cheap imports from India and China and there being too many local stationers for the population size,” he says. He adds the current state of the market is advantageous for dealer groups making them attractive as more resellers seek assistance. Dealers need to be making margin and Office Active needs to keep their members profitable for their company to grow. “Regarding the future of the company we do not plan to change the shape of the business because the model is working, has been successful in the past and continues to grow. We are not in the business for awards – we want to service the industry, get the solutions right and be the best there is. The reward is helping members and making a positive difference,” says Mc Cluskey.  Vol 96 - Issue 1

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tech savvy Acknowledgment Willie Strydom is a Microsoft solutions architect at Blue Falcon, an IT company, with 20 years experience in the technology industry. Contact 012 661 0477 or 082 550 4568 or email: christog@blueskynetworks.co.za.

Backup Solutions for Small to Medium Enterprises

lmost all businesses, small, medium or large make use of electronic data. Most of these businesses have most or in some cases even all of their company documents, finances and correspondence prepared and stored electronically. Some companies safeguard their valuable assets with passwords and keep their servers locked up in secure server rooms, but very few companies give much thought to disaster recovery.

Most other assets can be insured. If you car is stolen, you merely claim from your insurance and purchase a new car, however the same cannot be said for electronic data. So what can be done to safeguard important electronic data? The most common practice is backups. What is a backup I hear you ask? A backup is the activity of copying electronic data onto a separate location so that it will be preserved in case of equipment failure or another catastrophe. A backup is essential for large and small businesses, however most of the time it is sadly lacking or neglected. Before I tell you about the options available, let me mention to you the why. Why is a backup so important? If you haven’t lost data yet, count yourself lucky, very lucky! It is reported that up to 67% of Internet users have suffered serious data loss at some stage. It could happen easily if you lose your laptop or due to equipment failure, misplaced disks, a computer virus attack or some other catastrophic event like an office fire or flood. Bottom line, you are always at risk of losing valuable, important and irreplaceable data from your computer or server. There are two major options available to you. You can either make local backups or you can make backups to the internet. Both

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of these options have their respective pros and cons and you would have to identify your need and then weigh up both options in respect to certain legal and internal policies. Local backups are the most common and also one of the least expensive options. It usually involves backing up electronic data to a device directly connected to the computer, server or network. The problem with local backups is that it does involve a fair degree of management and monitoring. Firstly, the devices used for the backups needs to be taken off-site on a regular basis. Also, regular testing needs to be done to ensure that the devices being backed up to, is still functional. Internet backup is still new in South Africa but growing rapidly in popularity. There are many new companies offering clients the ability to back up their data, over the internet to a remote server or device located in a different city or even country. The management and monitoring of this method of backup is not as involved as with local backup, as it will be the responsibility of the service provider to perform the relevant tests and maintenance. These service providers are almost always properly protected against virus or hacker attacks, equipment failure or other catastrophic events. How do you decide? Unfortunately it’s not as easy as that. Each business is different, and each business will have different requirements or governing policies to contend with. The only option is to involve an IT partner who can understand your requirements and who can assist you in making the best decision for your organisation. Points to consider will be the legal implications of data leaving your business, budgets available and volumes of data that need to be backed up. However, the most important point is to make sure your electronic data is protected and do it as soon as possible. m Vol 96 - Issue 1

advertorial

Pentel News

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Pentel’s sales team has had a few changes over the last while, with both promotions and new arrivals. We would like to inform those of you that perhaps don’t know of these changes. With these changes we believe Pentel will go from strength to strength within the stationery industry and that we have exciting times ahead!

Barry JV Rensburg

Eugene Moag

Congratulations to Barry on being promoted to Regional Sales Manager (Inland) for Pentel! Barry has grown through the ranks from Sales Representative to Area Manager now to Regional Sales Manager. With his knowledge of Pentel products and customers we believe that he will be a great mentor to his sales team. Barry will still be calling on his existing customer base but will now be spending time within other regions to help and guide the sale team to better service their respective customers. We wish Barry all the best for the future and hope to see him go from strength to strength.

Eugene is larger than life in both personality and physical appearance. He comes from the motor vehicle industry where he was involved in sales of various product lines. So stepping into the stationery industry shouldn’t be too much of change for him. For the short time he has been with Pentel he has grasped what and how we do things and has hit the ground running. Mark Williams’ will be spending time with Eugene to iron out any issues that may arise, but we have no doubt that Eugene will be a fantastic asset going forward.

Mark Williams

David Bandey

Once again congratulations to Mark on his promotion to Regional Sales Manager (Coastal) within Pentel! Mark has been with Pentel for over 20 years and offers knowledge second to none. Mark will be visiting his newly acquired sales team on a regular basis as well as calling on existing clients within Gauteng and our Botswana client base. The new areas for Mark will now include the Western Cape, Eastern Cape & Kwazulu Natal. With his knowledge of the industry we have no doubt that Mark will succeed in growing the Pentel brand within these regions.

Welcoming somebody like David into the Pentel family was an absolute pleasure. He has such a great work ethic that we believe many could learn from. David has joined Mark Williams’ coastal team and will be representing Pentel within the Eastern Cape. We have seen a great response from customers dealing with David as nothing is too much effort and the customer definitely comes first in his eyes. We would like to wish David all the best for his future with Pentel.

Marki Strydom

Gary Shrives

Welcome to Marki who has joined Pentel within the Gauteng sales team. He will be calling on the Eastern, Southern and Swaziland regions. Marki has easily fitted into an already established team lead by Barry JV Rensburg. At Pentel we are always looking for innovative ideas on how to service, promote and sell our products and brand, with his experience within the alcohol distribution field Marki has offered some dynamic new ideas for us to try. We wish Marki good luck and hope to have him on board for many years to come.

We would like to welcome Gary back to Pentel. He has taken over the portfolio of National Sales Manager. He has over 10 years’ experience within the stationery industry and has been both sides of the market which we believe gives him a better idea of what our customers want and expect. Gary previously served at Pentel for nearly 7 years within the sales team, so it has been fairly easy for Gary to re-join the family. We wish Gary all the best for his future with Pentel and believe that he will have a long and successful career.

Words from Gary Shrives

I would like to take this time to thank Pentel for the opportunity they have presented me with and look forward to the challenge. I am looking forward to renewing my previous relationships with our customers as well as growing some new bonds going forward. I have had to really hit the ground running and am slowly catching up with things. With this in mind I have been relying on our Regional Managers Barry and Mark to look after their respective sales teams and they have more than lived up to my expectations, so thank you very much. I believe with the sales team we already had and the new additions we will be able to service the trade with a new vigour. We are in the process of making a few other changes so as to improve our service throughout the company but this will take us a bit of time to perfect. Once again thank you to Pentel and I look forward to seeing you all out in the field.

book reviews

Inspiring reads There’s nothing like a good book to help you to de-stress, escape into another world for a little while and at the same time become inspired . . .

Great by Choice: Uncertainty, Chaos and Luck – Why Some Thrive Despite Them All With a team of more than twenty researchers, Collins and Hansen studied companies that rose to greatness, beating their industry indexes by a minimum of ten times over a period of fifteen years in environments with big forces and rapid shifts that leaders could not control. The research team contrasted these companies to a carefully selected set of comparison companies that failed to achieve greatness in similarly extreme environments and the study results were full of provocative surprises. The authors challenge conventional wisdom with thought-provoking, sticky, and practical concepts. This book shows convincingly that even in a chaotic and uncertain world, greatness happens by choice, not by chance. m

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The Secret Letters of the Monk Who Sold His Ferrari Steve Jobs: The Exclusive Biography From bestselling author Walter Isaacson comes the landmark biography of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. In Steve Jobs: The Exclusive Biography, Isaacson provides an extraordinary account of Jobs’ professional and personal life. Drawn from three years of exclusive and unprecedented interviews Isaacson conducted with Jobs as well as extensive interviews with Jobs’ family members, key colleagues from Apple and its competitors, Steve Jobs: The Exclusive Biography is a definitive portrait of the greatest innovator of his generation. m

The Secret Letters of the Monk Who Sold his Ferrari is a compelling and timely fable by Robin Sharma about living your best life in complex times. When the now-famous character of Julian Mantle falls ill, he sends his nephew on an international adventure to retrieve Julian’s mementoes and secret letters - writings that reflect what Julian has learned over many years about living a remarkable life. A fascinating journey from the Bosphorus River in Turkey, to a fishing community in India and the catacombs of Paris, this book offers lessons for happiness and true success and shows readers how to live an authentic and meaningful life. m Vol 96 - Issue 1

cd reviews

Edgy, soulful, upbeat tunes Take time out to look at some of the albums making waves at the moment . . . Life on Mars – Jesse Clegg With his latest rock album Life on Mars, Jesse Clegg has taken a bold step forward in his music career and made his mark in the South African music industry. His latest album can be described as edgy, soulful and easy-listening with the first single ‘Clarity’ being both trendy and heartfelt. Clegg has been blazing his way into hearts of music fans following his first album in 2008 titled When I Wake Up and it is evident his heart and soul have been poured into his second solo record establishing him as one of South Africa’s top solo artists. m

Back to the Eighties 3 – David Gresham If you love the eighties then you won’t be disappointed by David Gresham Records’ Back to the Eighties 3, a compilation of 38 of the biggest 80’s pop hits. With tracks such as ‘Walking on Sunshine’ by Katrina & the Waves, ‘Everybody Wants to Rule the World’ by Tears For Fears and ‘Don’t Get Me Wrong’ by The Pretenders, it promises to have you bouncing to the beat in no time. The album has a host of feelgood party tunes taking you down memory lane to the decade of neon leg warmers, headbands and disco dancing. m

LP1 – Joss Stone Joss Stone’s fifth album LP1, cowritten and produced by Dave Stewart, of Eurythmics, in just six days in Nashville, goes for a much hard-rocking sound than her previous albums. Her fluid soul diva vocals deliver a solid performance yet again with a couple of moments of overreaching, just as anyone with such a powerful voice might be susceptible to. There are a couple of songs on the album where she is only accompanied by an acoustic guitar showcasing her raw talents. Overall the album is both tough and tender with witty lyrics and a rockiness that is invigorating. m www.shop-sa.co.za

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on the road Acknowledgment Stuart Johnston has 30 years of experience as a motoring journalist. He has worked for Car, Drive and scripted Car Torque, a television series on SABC. Johnston is also the editor of AutoLive, an online industry magazine and appears weekly on Ignition TV, a channel on DSTV. He drives a 25 year old Mercedes and a 46 year old Volvo.

A brand new pick-up for under R50 000 If you weren’t at the Jo’burg International Motor Show, you may have missed the fact that come February 2012, it will be possible to buy a brand new pick up for R49 990.

o surprises that the vehicle is Chinese and perhaps even less of a surprise is that the brand is obscure even by Asian-influx standards. The new little half-ton pickup, called the DFSK is available in a 1.0 litre version that will come in under the magical R50 000 barrier, something that hasn’t happened in our new vehicle market for over 10 years.

Even in 2002, the cheapest van you could buy was a Fiat Uno Espresso for R54 767. If you want to compare apples with apples, DFSK’s new 1.3 panel van is being advertised at R73 900 which is just R5 000 more than what a 2002 Toyota Conquest Carri van would cost you. If all this sounds a bit dodge-city, punters should take to heart that the DFSK is being shipped to this country by Geely South Africa, a Chinese brand that has been doing business here for the past five years. No independent journalist to my knowledge has actually tested a DFSK,

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but it looks like a lot of similar offerings from the Koreans and Japanese smallengined forward-cab pick-ups of a few generations ago. Therein lies the essence of these lowpriced Chinese products - just about all of them are clones of earlier designs. In the case of conventional pick-ups, there is the example the typical GWM pick up, which is pretty much an earlier-generation Isuzu. So for a lot less money you are buying a brand-new, zero kilometre vehicle based on a design that was cutting edge a decade or so ago. That is not a bad deal, especially if your vehicle is used purely for business purposes. As long as it stops and handles reasonably - and it will - as it has to be homologated here for South African sale, which means it has to pass certain standards and there is not too much wrong with 2002 technology. After all it is estimated that the average age of the countrywide South African ‘car park’ is around the 13 year mark right now. So if you buy a newly-manufactured 10 year design, you are still ahead of the game.

Talking of vans, I was browsing around in the backyard of a Midrand workshop that belongs to a friend of mine and a Renault panel van was standing there with all its doors open. Old Al, my friend, remarked that this van, a petrol-engined example had done over 400 000km and that apart from a few electrical niggles it was still in good shape and probably ready for another 100 000km or so. Old Al is a fan of diesels because he says they make him rich. He reckons they are fine up to 100 000km to 150 000km or so, but after that he gets so many diesels in for complete and very expensive engine overalls. It breaks his heart he says, because many guys still owe a lot of money on these vehicles which suddenly need a cash injection of R50 000 to R60 000. We aren’t sure what sort of warranty will be offered with the unproven, oetriol-engined DFSK, but it has to be good. After all, with some vehicles these days, R50 000 is an amount you pay for a warranty and service plan top-up. m Vol 96 - Issue 1

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Let shop-sa help you convert your slow moving and excess stock into cash List your product on the www.shop-sa.co.za trading page (members and non-members may sell stock online). Set an attractive price that will ensure high appeal. Reach a wide trade base via the shop-sa marketplace (only members have the right to purchase). Once all transactions have been concluded, shop-sa will invoice you for the agreed commission amount. Interested in moving your redundant stock? Participate in shop-sa’s new initiative and reap the benefits on your balance sheet. Contact Trish Swanepoel or Eugene Kleynhans on 011 880 1147 for information.

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Happy as can be in the West

COMPANY PROFILE Freedom Stationery has stores in Gauteng, KwaZulu Natal and Cape Town with markets in blue chip retailers such as Pick ‘n Pay, Massmart Group, Makro, Spar, Metro, Checkers, Clicks, Boxer Cash & Carry and Independents. For more information visit www. freedomstationery.co.za or contact 032 459 2820.

This issue we introduce Anthony West, national sales and marketing manager for Freedom Stationery

Q&A

What is your home-town? Zinkwazi Beach, KZN. Married? Divorced. Children? Two wonderful daughters, Danielle and Adrienne. What is your motto? ‘Carpe diem’ – Seize the day! Use three words to describe yourself: Sincere, caring and focused. What is your business philosophy? Work smart and have fun doing it. Briefly describe the highlights of your working career: Too many to mention here, singling out a few: A number of achievements as Region of the Year with previous employers, a nomination for Supplier of the Year with the Checkers group in 2006 and attending the Paperworld Trade Show in Frankfurt this year. What has been your greatest lesson in life? “S**t happens-deal with it and move on.” If you could change one thing in your industry, what would it be? Rebates. Describe a typical day in your work schedule: Attending to urgent items received on e-mail and then getting stuck into my To-Do list and focusing on the sales and marketing functions. I also schedule and spend time with the sales team in other provinces and spend time on trade visits with reps. How do you handle stress? Exercise and getting out in nature. What makes you happy? Spending time with the important people in my life. What makes you angry? Violence, bad driving and littering. What is the one thing you can’t do without? Time with my daughters and time spent in nature. Where do you like to visit when out-and-about in Durban? Beaches, forests, a few favourite restaurants, art galleries and markets.

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What is a favourite weekend outing? A trip to The Midlands and/or Drakensberg/Northern Zululand. What is your favourite website? www.anthonywestphotography.com What is your favourite retail store? Camera shops. What was the last new thing you bought? The magnificent Canon 7D camera. What is your favourite song currently? ‘Iridescent’ by Linkin Park. Do you have a hobby outside of work? My passion is macro photography (close-up photography of the small stuff), but I also love nature photography, portraiture and am excited by black and white. Where do you like to go on holiday? Overseas whenever possible, otherwise the Cedarberg. What car do you drive and why? BMW – Sheer driving pleasure. Favourite beverage? Good expressed coffee, fine red wine, good beer. Tell us something about yourself, we didn’t know: I discovered a new species of scorpion. How are you ‘proudly South African’? I support the Springboks, Bafana Bafana, and fly SAA. Do you practise ‘greening the earth’ in your personal or business life? Yes – mainly recycling at home, and i support the Forestry Stewardship Council as one of our business practices. What are your small indulgences in life? Chocolate and eating wild oysters on the beach where I live. Where/when do you read your copy of the shop-sa magazine? In my office – as soon as I can open it.

Vol 96 - Issue 1

crime alert

Crime Alert criminal or fraudulent activities you may be experiencing in the stationery industry.

Keeping shop-sa members abreast of criminal and fraudulent activity in the stationery and office products industry

Fraudulent order

Crime Line Crime Stop The success of South Africa’s anonymous crime tip-off services was showcased on an international stage at the annual conference of Crime Stoppers International (CSI) in Montego Bay, Jamaica in October. Addressing over 200 delegates Yusuf Abramjee, head of Crime Line, said an increase in the number of tip-offs and the resulting successes (regarding crime) were due to civil society becoming more active. “Crime Line has led to 1 400 arrests and R41-million in seizures since it was launched four years ago. Media partnerships in South Africa have assisted with the many successes,” he said. Recently, a campaign to track down ATM bombers led to nine arrests. Abramjee said this shows that if everyone works together, a great deal can be achieved. “More campaigns to track down wanted criminals will be launched. Police have thousands of wanted on their lists and we need to highlight that and be the eyes and ears,” he said. Delegates at the conference praised the success of Crime Line and Crime Stop saying the world could learn from South Africa’s achievements. “Crime no longer knows any borders. The world has become a small place and countries have to work closer together to fight the scourge. We are seeing an increase in corruption and we need to all stand up and say no to corruption and bribery,” said Abramjee. Contact 08 600 10111 to report any

Mark Weston of Document Excellence recently received a fraudulent order for 300 boxes of A4 copy paper with the following details on it: Elite Investments cc, CK. No. 2010/008100/07, VAT. NO. 4550256319, 25 Cnr Ridgeweg & Boundary Road, Houghton Village, Houghton, Tel: 011 494 5020 and Fax: 086 606 2217 with the following email address: grhmgreen79@ gmail.com and contact person Teddy on cell 073 827 1257. Please be aware of these Vat and CK numbers that are being circulated.

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Fraudulent order Louise Mohorich of World Focus Technology recently received a fraudulent order for 160 boxes of Rotatrim paper with the following details: Fusion Printers cc, Reg no 2009/002797/07, VAT nr 4600109500 (which belongs to Terex Africa); Physical Address: 171 Harrington Street, Mitchelsplain 7785 (address does not exist), Cell: 076 2275960, Email: fusioncc@mailbox.co.za / from a Fortune Petersen, with the email address of hillside@starmail.co.za. Please be aware of these fraudulent or misrepresented details being circulated.

Fraudulent ‘change of bank details’ notice Sappi recently sent out an urgent memo to their customers regarding a recent fraudulently circulated notice of a change of their bank details. Despite a notice stating that Sappi has changed their bank details, the company would like to state that their bank details have NOT changed. Should you have even the smallest concern, please feel free to contact Sappi directly to verify their bank details on 011 407 8168 or contact Darashini Govender on Darashini.Govender@sappi.com.

www.turnitaround.co.za www.shop-sa.co.za

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REPORT s h o p sCRIME a m a g a z iAT ne info@shop-sa.co.za

credit risk Acknowledgment Lauren Orritt is a legal advisor and owner of Legal & Debt Outsource Solutions and has been involved in the debt recovery business for 20 years. She consults with suppliers, manufacturers and wholesalers within the industry assisting in reducing bad debts while attempting to avoid litigation and court involvement.

Credit checks and risk assessment How credit bureau information and information sharing can assist your business. In years gone by, many creditors were left to their own devices and placed at considerable risk in determining whether or not to grant a customer credit followed by having to decide on the credit limit that they should impose.

ith the advancement of the technological age as well as the evolvement of credit law in our country over the past few years, risk assessment is a lot easier for credit grantors. It is highly recommended that they take advantage of the simple procedures available to them to determine credit worthiness of a prospective customer which will also ultimately protect their business.

Gone are the outdated modes of determining credit by way of contacting trade references. The most effective way in determining a customer’s credit worthiness is to conduct a credit history check on credit bureaus that are available – for example ITC or Experian. Not only do these credit bureaus give you an immediate glance as to whether a prospective customer has been ‘blacklisted’ but these checks also reveal pertinent positive information to the credit grantor as to

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the consumer’s credit and payment conduct which will ultimately give the credit grantor a clear idea of what credit limit to grant the prospective customer and to make a more assertive risk assessment for the business. In the debt recovery field – we make regular use of our subscription to the various credit bureaus and data bases available in order to trace defaulting debtors and to be able to accurately advise our clients as to the collectability of debts. For example, to determine whether the issuing of summons would be a viable option (i.e does the debtor have immovable property registered against its name, any judgments or default listings, permanent employment) and what used to take months to build a portfolio on a defaulting debtor, now can take just a few minutes. With the introduction of the National Credit Act – the mode of simply using credit bureaus to blacklist a bad payer is now obsolete and consumers and credit grantors must now be made aware of the positive effects that such credit records can have for a consumer. It is based on the concept of

shared information within a controlled and regulated environment. By accessing credit records you will be able to have access to a consumers account conduct over the past two years and in terms of Regulation 17 of the National Credit Act the payment history of a consumer the past five years can be recorded. One must remember however to have the consumer sign a consent form – allowing a prospective grantor to access their credit bureau information and to make the consumer aware this is the means which you utilise to determine credit worthiness. A further mode that can assist the creditor grantor in assessing their risk exposure is to utilise industry concentrated databases as to defaulting debtors. This is a detailed topic which I will be discussing in our next article with special regard to the legal implications thereof. There are various costs implications involved in subscribing to credit bureaus and it is advisable to contact a consultant at these credit bureaus to find a package that suits your needs. m Vol 96 - Issue 1

association news

Parrot training centre offers free training Parrot Products recently completed installation of a range of six interactive whiteboards and interactive systems in their training centre in Johannesburg. A weakness in the industry identified by Parrot regarding interactive systems is the lack of knowledge teachers and training professionals possess but which is a requirement if users wish to gain the optimal use out of these products. The Parrot Training Centre has been implemented to facilitate demonstrations and training sessions for their dealer base to ensure improved knowledge and application. To book a free demonstration on available units contact Andre on 0861 262 737.

SHOP-SA EVENTS An informative and fun filled evening took place on the 27 October in KwaZulu-Natal when over 150 shopsa members gathered at the Riverside Hotel in Durban for their year end event. Salina Govindsamy, of Gavin Gow Incorporated, a firm of attorneys, delivered a presentation on the Consumer Protection Act and answered shop-sa member’s questions. Eugene Kleynhans, executive director of shop-sa and David Nkabinde, events manager of shop-sa, also attended the event. Kleynhans shared his vision with the regional committee before the event.

shop-sa would like to wish all its valued members and readers a festive holiday season and peace and goodwill for 2012. Please note the shop-sa offices will be closed between 23 December and 8 January.

MEMBER EVENTS Office Active conference a success The third annual Office Active Dealer Alliance conference held in October at

www.shop-sa.co.za

a Thaba Ya Batswana conference venue in Johannesburg exceeded expectations with resellers and suppliers at the event achieving a combined purchasing target of R3 850 000. This formed part of their theme for the event of ‘One In A Million’ where a challenge was set for resellers and suppliers to meet a target of R1 000 000.00. The conference included a formal dinner where Aki Annestasio, Talk Radio 702 presenter, spoke of the rapidly changing environment and potential within the electronic age; as well as a members’ closed sessions where marketing strategies were discussed. “The conference saw a very positive turnout from industry suppliers as well as Office Active resellers who closely interacted over the first day,” says Garry McCluskey, director for Office Active Dealer Alliance.

Stationers promote Cancer awareness More than 100 PAs and office managers from Rustenburg attended a women’s lunch event hosted by Bhams Stationers, Rexel Office Products and Pilot Pen in aid of breast cancer awareness in October. The event was held at the Rustenburg Golf Club with guest speakers Marita Swart, care and support specialist at CANSA in Brits’ and Priscilla Bouwer, winner of the OPSA/Rexel SA National Office Professional of the Year spoke to the guests.

Kolok sponsors van for Reach For A Dream children

Kolok, a supplier of printer supplies and storage data, has empowered the Pretoria branch of the Reach For A Dream Foundation, by sponsoring a 14-seater Toyota Quantum for the charity organisation in November. The van will be used by the foundation to transport children from hospitals and homes on outings to fulfill their dreams. On 8 November, the keys of the vehicle were handed over to Yolande Le Grange, Pretoria branch manager of the Reach For A Dream Foundation, by Nazrana Bhorat, marketing manager for Kolok at the Kolok offices in Ormonde. On that day, children from the oncology ward at Baragwanath Hospital, received happy meals and were taken for ice-cream and movies at Southgate. “Kolok is proud to sponsor the vehicle for this worthy cause. Our management and staff have a strong commitment towards serving the community and organisations like the Reach for a Dream Foundation. It is a great opportunity and privilege for us to be a part of this initiative,” says Bhorat. Bronwyn Feldwick-Davis, national project

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manager of Reach For A Dream, says they are grateful to Kolok for sponsoring the vehicle. “Our foundation is about inspiring hope and creating laughter for children with life threatening illnesses and these outings create much needed fun away from the hospital environment,” she says.

PEOPLE

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BUSINESS

Rexel appoints new agent

Office Club member update

Rexel Office Products have appointed Paul Van Vuuren as their new agent in KwaZulu-Natal. Van Vuuren, originally from Durban, is well known in the industry as he has worked for Mondi Paper for the past 10 years as a national sales manager handling accounts such as Waltons and Nashua. Before working for Mondi, Van Vuuren was a key accounts manager at Paperlink. He takes over from Debbie McLean who recently returned to Ireland. “I am delighted to take up this new role on 1 January 2012 and look forward to working with my old customers and new ones alike,” he says.

Ikhwezi Lokusa Stationery & Promotions based in Cape Town and Rein Office Supplies, based in Alberton have resigned as members of Office Club. If further information is required contact the Office Club team on 011 794 4105. Office Club extends a warm welcome to Walkden’s Stationery Co. based in Randpark Ridge, Gauteng, as their latest member to join Office Club.

Winners of the rexel punchline competition

Office National member update As a supplier to the Office National Africa and its members, be advised that Prestige Office National is no longer part of the Office National Africa group. If you have any questions, contact Ryan Bidgood on 011 704 0056.

ACT has new look and feel

Samuel Skei, of Tiger Brands and Shelley Le Roux of BSC Stationery seen receiving their prize of a GBC H220 laminator from Rexel.

Trefoil appoints Botes

Pentel SA where he was also national sales manager. His background complements Trefoil Manufacturing’s focus on service delivery and they wish him success in his new position.

Owen Botes has been appointed national sales manager of Trefoil Manufacturing. Botes, who has more than a decade’s experience in the office products industry, comes from

shopsa magazine

Advanced Channel Technologies (A.C.T.), supplier of information technology printer consumables and supplies, has rebranded alongside the celebration of their tenth birthday on 1 December. Charnel Hattingh, marketing manager for A.C.T., says management at the company felt it was an appropriate time to launch the new brand as the company has evolved from being a consumables only distributor to one that focuses on printers, consumables and accessories and the rebranding coincides with the launch of their new head office. “We wanted to reflect the freshness and energy our new strategy has

Vol 96 - Issue 1

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ignited and hopefully we have dynamic and modern brand. rebranding as it is important that we are offering a broader she says.

achieved this with the new We are excited about the we send out the message solution to our customers,”

PRODUCTS Bostik launches cable adhesive

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Bostik has launched a new product of one solution adhesive for all cable installations to prevent customers from having unsightly cables indoors or outdoors. The new Bostik Cable Adhesive is a clear, strong, quick drying adhesive, ideal for sticking all types of cables to walls, ceilings, skirting’s and more. It is acid free and does not yellow with age. Available at leading retail stores and stationery outlets nationwide, a 50ml tube sells for approximately R13 to R15. Visit www.bostik.co.za for more info or contact Gabi at Upfront Marketin at gabi@upfrontmarketing.co.za. m

Antalis celebrates 10 year partnership with Colour Planet

Management at Antalis, distributors of graphic equipment and paper communication support materials, congratulated Colour Planet, a litho printing company, on their 10 year anniversary in November. “We give our best wishes and congratulations to Colour Planet on their 10 year anniversary. Over the last 10 years Antalis have shared a common goal with Colour Planet of having a partnership which leads to installations of the latest and best technology,” says Keith Solomon, director of Antalis South Africa. Mike Dewar, managing director of Colour Planet says litho printing has become more competitive and the last financial year has been tough for them, their clients and suppliers and they feel the best way to respond to this is to open up additional markets for business. “Looking forward, we feel confident in the strategic decisions we’ve made, such as installing the Kodak NexPress, a digital production colour press with Print Genius, that will put us in a better position to perform exceptionally when stronger economic times return,” he says. Dewar adds their decision to choose the Kodak NexPress was based on the fact the equipment is not limited to one substrate and unlike many other engines, which require special digital

Vol 96 - Issue 1

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stock, this colour press does not. “The support and guidance we receive from the Antalis team has been exemplary over our many years of working together,” continues Dewar. Solomon adds he would like to thank Colour Planet, on behalf of the extended Antalis team, for being such an outstanding customer, long may our partnership last.

Samsung extends Kolok’s product portfolio Samsung Electronics, a technology company, has announced their partnership with Kolok, distributor of computer and consumable products for the South African region. Through this agreement, Kolok will now not only be responsible for the distribution of Samsung consumables in South Africa and across Southern Africa but also becomes a hardware distributor covering Samsung printers, notebooks and monitors as part of their South Africa portfolio. Samsung Electronics recently launched Samsung Business, a sub-brand of Samsung Electronics focused on bringing together the company’s business offering with new and exciting products. Sylvester Moyo, national channel manager at Samsung South Africa says that Kolok, has been an authorised Samsung consumables distributor in South Africa for two years and have provided Samsung with the very best in distributor relations - taking their product into the market professionally and with great success. “This coupled with their national footprint and 45 years of experience makes for a solid partnership where their values of delivery and commitment align well with the Samsung brand,” he says. Allan Thompson, managing director at Kolok says their aim is to develop and utilise technology that ensures they remain industry leaders. “This partnership with Samsung Business is another way we are able to do this. Samsung offers a wide range of high end, innovative business products that meet the needs of our customers and as a result, align well to our business strategy and philosophy,” he says.

UPCOMING INDUSTRY EVENTS 9 – 12 January 2012 Hong Kong International Stationery Fair This event will be held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. For information go to www.hkstationeryfair. com. 30 January 2012 The European Office Products Awards Presentation Dinner, Germany Recognising flair, innovation, professionalism and success. The OPI awards give companies a unique platform to promote their achievements. Winners will be announced at the dinner to be held during the annual Paperworld exhibition in Frankfurt. For information log onto www.opi.net. 10 – 13 January International Consumer Electronic Show, USA The International Consumer Electronic Show (CES) is an educational forum to help companies expand their businesses and understand new technology taking place in Las Vegas. Approximately 200 sessions to discuss industry trends and 500 expert speakers. For information log onto www.cesweb.org. 28 to 31 January 2012 Paperworld, Frankfurt, Germany. Paperworld, the world’s leading fair for paper, office supplies and stationery products for private and business use which sees over 51 000 trade visitors from around the globe. 28 to 31 January 2012 Creativeworld, Frankfurt, Germany.

The world’s biggest trade fair for the creative sector focussing on the hobby, crafts and artists’ requisites segments. Jan – Nov 2012 Achieving Customer Service Excellence This two day course is held by Siyanqoba Seminars in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town and Durban and costs R3750. Contact Siyanqoba Seminars on 0861 986 986. Jan – Nov 2012 Essential Finance This two day course is also held by Siyanqoba Seminars in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town and Durban and costs R3750. Contact Siyanqoba Seminars on 0861 986 986. Jan – Nov 2012 Managers Development Programme This three day course is held by Siyanqoba Seminars in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town and Durban and costs R6950. Contact Siyanqoba Seminars on 0861 986 986. 13 January 2012 The Corporate Governance Seminar with Professor Mervyn King Join Professor Mervyn King for a one day seminar in Durban, where he will unpack everything needed for good corporate governance in business. It includes lunch and refreshments and costs R3 750 per delegate. Contact 011 880 4808 or james@frontfoot.co.za. 18 Feb – 1 March 2012 EuroCIS 2012, Germany Information technology solutions, systems and innovations that will be exhibited at EuroCIS 2012 include checkout solutions, payment systems, inventory control, supply chain management and security systems. For information go to www.eurocis.com or contact Morgana van Niekerk on +27 011 486 2775 or mvanniekerk@germanchamber.co.za.

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ULTIMARK - Big Stamps in a Flash When you need a large self-inking stamp opt for ULTIMARK. Just press and print! It’s that simple with Ultimark pre-inked stamps. You don’t need a separate stamp pad because the ink is in the stamp. Crisp, clean & neat. Re-inkable when required. RS&e as always, first to bring you new technology. ‘Flash’ by ULTIMARK.

Contact Lyn van den Berg for more info. Tel: 011 262 1400

BELL STUDIO 4000 • • • •

50 Name and number directory Caller Display with up to 40 number calls list Call waiting 10 last number redial Choice of base and handset

Tel: 011 284 0300 www.koloksa.co.za

A File-A-Punch The perfect tool for helping you keep your filing up-to-date. It’s a paper punch that also acts as the paper compressor in your lever-arch file. It is so small and thin it can also be kept in your pencil case or handbag for use when you need it. Ideal for students, accountants or anyone who is constantly filing documents.

Tel: 082 820 9379 Email: ak@hiltoncollege.com www.fileapunch.co.za

The latest innovation from Bantex is the “inspiration through colour” communication platform. This initiative is targeted to the B2B consumer to inform the office worker of the importance of creating an organized environment by effective filing methods, the availability of the many filing accessories and how to enhance their working area. Colour affects every moment of our lives and although often unconscious, has a big emotional impact on all of us. Bantex has partnered up with ICAP, Document warehouse, Dictum Publishers, OPSA, numerous PA forums in major corporations and consumer print media plus more, to communicate the Bantex 2 Business campaign.

Tel: 011 473 9800 Email: aprior@bantex.co.za Website: www.bantex.co.za

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shopsa magazine

product showcase

Falcon-Tech Tablet/Notebook Carriers Keep your Tablets, Laptops and Notepads protected in one of the new carriers now supplied by Falcon Products. Available in different shapes, finishes and sizes to suit individual requirements, these items are a must have for professional people on the go.

Tel: 011 334 0657 Email: info@ledgersystems.co.za

MaxStamp with reversible ink pad Get double the number of impressions with our unique reversible ink pad. All our â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;flip padâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; stamps are made of recycled materials.

Tel: 011 453 7012/9439 / Fax: 011 454 4995/3758 Email: aquarius@imaginet.co.za

The DSB Range of Shredders & Binders Imported from the Far East, the range of office shredders and binders cater for large, medium and small business requirements. AZ Trading facilitates the presentation, protection, precision cutting and safe disposal of your confidential data and documents by supplying top quality office machines and consumables.

Tel: 086 111 4407 www.aztradingcc.co.za

The Kobra Range of Trimmers and Cutters Imported from Italy, the range of cutters, A4-A0, cater for medium and small business requirements. AZ Trading facilitates the presentation, protection, precision cutting and safe disposal of your confidential data and documents by supplying top quality office machines and consumables.

Tel: 086 111 4407 www.aztradingcc.co.za

shopsa magazine

Vol 96 - Issue 1

product showcase

Parrot Glass Board Marker Not only suitable for Glass Boards – can also be used on windows, Chalk Boards, Black Boards and Whiteboards. Simply erase with a wet cloth. Available in a card of 6 bright colours. Pump action ink flow ensures writing consistency.

National Call Centre Number: 0861 262 737 Fax: 011 615 2502 www.parrotproducts.biz

Parrot Liquid Ink Highlighters Parrot’s new liquid ink highlighters ensure consistent liquid flow. Non fading ink, copier an fax friendly. Available in a card of 4 in pink, orange, yellow and green

National Call Centre Number: 0861 262 737 Fax: 011 615 2502 www.parrotproducts.biz

Parrot Interactive Whiteboard System IW1000 • • • • • • •

Mobile Transform any flat surface into an Interactive Whiteboard Use with Stylus E Pen Infra-Red Technology Three hour training session provided (per site) - free of charge One Year warranty Ideal for travelling presentations

National Call Centre Number: 0861 262 737 Fax: 011 615 2502 www.parrotproducts.biz

Parrot Interactive Whiteboard System IW2000 • • • • • • •

Hard Coated polyester surface Touch Panel – 1675*1275mm Finger and/or pen touch sensitive technology Pre-programmed buttons on the left and right sides of the board for quick write and erase E Board stand – optional extra Three hour training session provided (per site) – free of charge One Year warranty Suitable for permanent mount in a classroom or boardroom

National Call Centre Number: 0861 262 737 Fax: 011 615 2502 www.parrotproducts.biz

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shopsa magazine

product showcase

Parrot Interactive Whiteboard System IW7000 • • • • • •

65” LCD Touch Panel – 1428*803mm Finger and/or pen touch sensitive technology Built in multi touch functions under Windows 7 and Windows XP Three hour training session provided (per site) – free of charge One Year warranty Suitable for permanent mount in a classroom or boardroom ( this system should be mounted on a concrete wall)

National Call Centre Number: 0861 262 737 Fax: 011 615 2502 www.parrotproducts.biz

GBC HighSpeed H318 A3 Laminator plus 100 free pouches! GBC’s HighSpeed H318 A3 laminator combines GBC Sureflow Anti-Jam performance and HighSpeed throughput of 500mm/min to make lamination stress free and highly productive. Perfect for small to medium–sized office environments with medium usage where time and productivity is of vital importance. H318 is currently the fastest 2 roller laminator on the market featuring auto shut off in only 30 minutes. Buy one now and get 100 FREE pouches, while stocks last!

Tel: 011 226 3300 Fax: 011 837 9489 Web: www.rexelsa.co.za

GBC C20 CombBinder plus 200 free binding covers! GBC’s new range of comb binding machines feature low punch force technology, to reduce punching effort by up to 50% for increased productivity. The GBC CombBinder C20 is a simple and intuitive office binding machine that is ideal for everyday medium office use. It features the unique Quickstep Workflow Guide to lead users instinctively through the whole process using colour coding and images, enabling novices and expert binders alike to achieve perfect results every time. Punch capacity: 20 (80gsm) sheets. Binding capability: 330 sheets. 2 Year Warranty. Get 200 FREE binding covers with the C20, while stocks last!

Tel: 011 226 3300 Fax: 011 837 9489 Web: www.rexelsa.co.za

Rexel Auto+ 250X Automatic Feed Shredder Launching in 2012, this small office shredder incorporates reliable roller based auto feed technology for infrequent bulk shredding. Automated shredding of up to 250 fastened sheets (80gsm) in one fill. Includes Mercury Anti-Jam technology when manual feeding of up to 8 sheets. Staples and paperclips do not need to be removed. Security level S3 which confetti cuts paper into 4x40mm pieces (1 A4 into 400 pieces). Includes a 4 digit pin code lock for secure, walk away shredding. Self cleaning cutter prevents paper build up. Very quiet and auto power shut off saves energy. Other features include thermal overload protection and indicators for cool down, door open/bin full and check paper. Simply STACK, SHUT, GO! Shredding made easy!

Tel: 011 226 3300 Fax: 011 837 9489 Web: www.rexelsa.co.za

shopsa magazine

Vol 96 - Issue 1

product showcase

MAPED SHARPNER AND ERASER COMBO’S 2 in 1 048010 Astro 1 hole sharpeners and eraser combo and 048110 Mondoo Sharpener and eraser combo NEW FROM MAPED.