Thursday, 22 Sep 2016 19:55 GMT

Phil Walker

Jo Golding speaks to Phil Walker, managing director at Innotech, about his wealth of experience in the industry and what the future holds for the company

A customer driven team

What is your history in the industry and your current role at Innotech?

In 1990, I joined the paper merchant industry and progressed to take on a sales director role. During this period, I gained hands on experience and interacted with and built many quality relationships with printers that helped me learn and understand their pain points. 

In 2008, I set up Innotech after spotting the progression of the wide-format printing and the signage market. Since then I have overseen the building of a team that has driven Innotech to where it is today, tripling its turnover in three years.


Innotech welcomed visitors to its busy stand at Sign and Digital UK this year
 
We have built a senior management team that provides the platform for Innotech’s growth and we are constantly on the lookout for new business opportunities—which have previously seen us enter the wide-format printing sector and just 18 months later diversifying into the portable display market.

As Innotech’s managing director, I run the daily activities of each department, and develop and refine our business strategy in view of establishing ourselves as the cutting-edge wide-format print consumables company. 

With intense competition in the sign and graphics industry, what does Innotech do to stay ahead?

We focus on three key areas: customer service, product innovation, and unparalleled stock holding.

Being able to get the right stock to our customers quickly is a key differentiator. We have over 1,000,000sq m of banner media and 50,000 roller banners in stock at any given time. There is no doubt that this has been the driver of our success over the past eight years and has helped us gain credibility within the market and gain customer respect and loyalty.


Innotech stocks over 1,000,000sq m of banner and over 50,000 roller banners in its warehouse
 
When Innotech was first founded, I ensured that our efforts were focused on delivering exceptional customer service, and we are proving the benefit of it now.


Innotech has a purpose built facility in Leicestershire


Our employees are passionate, hardworking, and use their own initiative to wow our customers and go beyond their expectations time after time. The result? We have a proven track record of excellent client retention.

You launched Spike at Sign and Digital UK, what are the benefits of this product for sign-makers?

The message we have been getting is that it is a shame Spike did not come out a few years ago. It has clearly lived up to their expectations, which is obviously great for us to hear. Sign-makers have to spend so much time, effort, and money estimating projects that they are not even guaranteed to win. We like to think Spike has turned estimating on its head.


The Spike Laser Measuring Tool in action
 
Now, sign professionals just have to take a picture of the building they are quoting a project for using their tablet or smartphone, and they can give their customer a quote within minutes.

How has growth been for Innotech over the last few years?

Exceptional. Since 2013, we have more than doubled the number of staff and we are on track to double our sales over a two-year period ending in 2017. We have also had a lot of success in Europe and further afield, which we see as a massive opportunity to further expand our presence in France, Germany, Italy, and the Benelux countries.

The reason for our growth is our customer driven team with a passionate hardworking can-do culture. Stock holding and taking out the links in the supply chain are also key drivers contributing to this growth.

The reason for our growth is our customer driven team with a passionate hardworking can-do culture”



What would you say is the company’s ethos?

A big focus this year has been on building a winning team culture. We have three core values: pioneering, flexible, and trustworthy.

A big focus this year has been on building a winning team culture. We have three core values: pioneering, flexible, and trustworthy”


It is through these qualities that we deliver our exceptional customer service and drive innovation, which encourages customers to continue to use Innotech for all their needs, whether printing, display, or POS.

What can we expect from Innotech in the future?

We are building up our team of external account managers as well as internal customer service champions with a view to achieving accelerated growth in 2017. We have also got some exciting new product ranges in the pipeline, but they will be announced in due course.



Key Stats

  • Joined paper merchant industry in 1990
  • Set up Innotech in 2008
  • Stocks over 1,000,000sq m  of banner media
  • Stocks 50,000 roller banners




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