Tarsus Technologies has announced the expansion of its operation into the sub-Saharan Africa region, with the establishment of a dedicated product management and sales team that will focus on the HP component of the company`s product portfolio.
Alan Hawkins, sales manager at Tarsus Technologies, says this move comes on the back of Tarsus`s appointment by HP to act as both an LSP (Logistics Service Partner) and CDP (Channel Development Partner) for the southern African region.
"This is great news for sub-Saharan Africa as it will now have access to the world-class services, products and solutions that our South African customers have been receiving for more than a decade. Our customers will definitely gain a noticeable advantage when dealing with Tarsus as we strengthen our position as the region`s largest distributor of printers, by adding the full offering of the HP product portfolio for our sub-Saharan customers."
"While Tarsus has been doing business outside of SA for some time, the appointment of the company as an LSP and CDP for sub-Saharan Africa means we can invoice customers in US dollars and no longer in South African rand, making it easier for customers."
Hawkins says the fact that import duties on many of the products carried by Tarsus have fallen away has also paved the road for such a venture. "Today, there`s no longer a need for a bonded warehouse, meaning stock availability is less of a hassle and customers are able to buy in a currency they are more familiar with."
In terms of Tarsus`s plans for sub-Saharan Africa, Hawkins says the product management and sales teams will be located at its head office in Sandton, since this will allow them to draw on the vast product and market expertise the company has already developed locally.
"From a logistics perspective we will also be able to exploit the close relationship we have built over the years with our courier service partners to facilitate delivery to customers in sub-Saharan Africa and house stock locally in SA."
Hawkins says this approach makes sense for many reasons, including the fact that locally housing stock will allow customers to make use of Tarsus`s in-house configuration centre to facilitate staging and image installation, assisting with large roll-outs.
Hawkins believes opening Tarsus up to this new market could make for a substantial boost in the company`s revenues. "I believe we could see Tarsus`s revenues climbing by anywhere between 10% and 15% over the coming year as a result of the expanded market," he says.
Although Tarsus`s primary focus will be on HP solutions, Hawkins says in the coming months he plans to expand the company`s available product portfolio in this new region. "We plan to also introduce the Samsung, Oki and TallyGenicom brands to sub-Saharan Africa, with a view to expanding the list of available brands before the end of the year," he concludes.
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Tarsus Technologies is rated by suppliers and channel partners as SA`s leading hardware distributor for its stability, service ethos, product knowledge, excellent support, competitive pricing strategies and channel focus.
Distributing a wide range of products from the world`s leading manufacturers, including Acer, APC, HP, IBM, OKI, Samsung and Tally, and supplementing this range with its own brand - the Tarsus PC - Tarsus focuses strongly on long-lasting partnerships with its suppliers and resellers. In line with this philosophy, Tarsus provides a comprehensive range of services to its resellers that enables them to add value to their own offering, and assists them in growing their business.
It is this service offering that has afforded Tarsus a number of channel accolades. The latest include: Channel Executive Awards - 2002; Best Distributor Overall - 2002; Compaq`s "BDG Distributor of the Year" award - 2001 and CRN Outlook Awards - 2002.
More information about Tarsus is available at http://www.tarsus.co.za.
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