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It’s full steam ahead for distributor Entatech, with its Ministry of Gaming initiative gathering pace, a new office, extra warehouse space and more EntaLive events on the horizon. Entatech VP Jon Atherton tells Dominic Sacco more.
PCR: You’ve recently launched the Ministry of Gaming (MOG) initiative. Is this an easier way for resellers to buy gaming stock?
Jon Atherton: Yes – it’s geared up as a benefit for all parties. From a reseller perspective if they buy into the MOG franchise they will receive a wealth of benefits, for example a quarterly rebate from MOG vendors, exclusive buy-in deals, huge marketing resources and be the first to hear of new products.
Our gaming sector is going from strength to strength and the Ministry of Gaming will further enhance this channel. In terms of PC gaming vendors, we’re the number one in the UK.
Are you looking for more vendors to sign up?
We’ve got a number of vendors which we’re very pleased with at the moment. We don’t want to saturate it, we want it to have value, so we’ll only invite additional vendors that can offer complimentary products to the existing range. Our customers also need to see the credit in doing this. It’s not just about joining and away you go, you need to participate, get involved and help drive MOG forward.
How’s business been over the past 12 months? Has it met expectations?
We’ve seen significant growth. Our business with independents is growing which is encouraging and exciting. We’re seeing more and more independents embrace different types of technology, for example getting into servers and service-orientated products and CCTV, which is going from strength to strength. More and more resellers are selling gaming PCs, which is exciting, whereas previously they’d be selling corporate desktop PCs for less than £500 or £600.
You’ve just opened a new office in Leatherhead – Entatech South…
With Northamber losing its franchise with Fujitsu I saw it as an opportunity to set up an office down South and bring in experienced individuals who knew the market and the product, and could hit the ground running when selling servers. Off the back of that, we’ve employed other people with Microsoft experience.
Predominantly, the Southern office is focusing on Microsoft licencing and Fujitsu server storage products.
What about your warehouse expansion – how is that progressing?
It’s complete: the warehouse expansion added a few thousand pallets worth of space. We’ve been using third-party storage off site for the last 12 months, as we ran out of room in our existing warehouse.
We’ve now implemented a third shift system where the last team finish at 2.15am, as a result of the amount of orders we’re generating each day. Over the last two years we’ve doubled the amount of orders we’ve taken on a daily basis.
What are the benefits of sourcing stock through Entatech?
We know our routes. We’re very focused on the independent channel market. We wouldn’t be where we are today without the independent reseller and we’re very thankful for that.
Secondly, we continue to pour initiatives such as MOG, hire more sales staff and support independent groups like Synaxon and Network Group. We’re also now in a position where Entatech supplies over 75 brands – a third of those are exclusive to us. People can make money out of our products, especially the new products we’re bringing on. And that’s what it’s all about at the end of the day.
Your two EntaLive events earlier this year were a success, can you tell us what you’ve got planned for the next two this year?
We have one planned at the mighty West Bromwich Albion on October 1st – here we’ll be offering delegates Microsoft Sales Specialist Accreditation training, where they’ll be able to gain a greater insight into the various Microsoft products and solutions for their customers.
We have another one at Fujitsu’s Innovation Centre on November 5th in London’s Baker Street, which will feature product demonstrations and presentations from a number of our key vendors.
What’s next for Enta?
The key focus for us is we’ve taken on some big brands in the last eight or nine months that are maturing, but we need to spend more time on those at the moment. We’re not a large organisation; we’re not a distributor that looks at taking on a new vendor every other week. We’re very precise with what we do and that process needs to continue. At this stage I can’t divulge too much but watch this space over the coming weeks and months.
How to join the Ministry
For more information on the Ministry of Gaming or to get involved, email mog@entagroup.com or call Enta’s MOG representative on 0333 101 9601.
Factfile: Entatech
Specialism: Distribution
Staff: Around 250
Contact: 0333 101 1000
Web: www.entatech.com
