Océ, a supplier of professional printing and document management systems, refers to its business in Asia as "David versus Goliath". A well-established company in Europe - celebrating its 130^th anniversary on October 29^th, the company is no new kid on the block in Asia - it's in fact had a presence in this region for 30 years - in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand China and Japan.

Rob de Louw, general manager of Océ Digital Document Systems, Océ Digital Hub admits that the company has been flying under the radar since its establishment in this region but this is not because Océ has no ambitions in Asia. "Océ addresses businesses where every consumer is in, but very often, the consumer does not see our name," he explains.

Elaborating on the company's strategy, Andre Hoeben, managing director, Océ Singapore, states that Océ is very aware that it is competing against huge Asian competitors such as Canon, Ricoh and Fuji Xerox as well as that it is relatively small in this region. "We do not want the whole printer market. Our game-plan is to play smart aiming at specific segments. Printing is always the end-stage and we focus on niches where the highest levels of service agreements are needed and we excel in this space

He highlights that the company is making money in Asia and doing very well. The credit for this, he says is Océ's continuous investment in technology. "Research and Development is very important to us and innovating is a hallmark and philosophy of Océ. In fact, whatever the regional base, we always ensure that 7% of the region's revenues are put back into R&D. Océ also utilizes the specialist knowledge, or the manufacturing economies of scale, of selected companies or suppliers with which it has built close relationships over the years.

On this basis, the Océ Group has entered into some strategic alliances to supplement the Océ range," stresses Hoeben.

In Asia, Océ works mainly through an indirect model, mostly using distributors to enter the country, and then once well-established, works at establishing a direct presence.

The company is expanding both its direct as well as indirect sales channels in Asia.

Océ also works with distribution partners in countries where it already is present. These partners may act as geographical distribution partners extending Océ's market reach, or they may add certain niche knowledge of a market segment.

de Louw notes that the Océ is currently working with around 30 distributors in the region. "Asia presents a lot of opportunities and challenges because each market is unique and has a different way of doing business, different cultures, different languages, and so on. In Asia, the indirect model is the way for Océ especially as we want to continue to expand here. It is impossible to set up a direct presence in all countries - this will drain a company. Our reliance on partner organizations has intensified across the entire value chain

It is not surprising then that enlarging its distribution power is one of the corner stones of the corporate growth strategy of Océ. The other two strategic pillars of the company are technological innovation and organizational efficiencies. With this 3-prong strategy, Océ is expanding its position in wide format printing and  leveraging its expertise in small format continuous feed printing to achieve a leading position in cutsheet. This strategy is not just for Asia, but serves the company well globally

Asia plays a huge role in Océ's vision and strategy. In fact, continued outsourcing will see about 60% of the volume of the company's Dutch manufacturing operations transferred to Eastern Europe and Asia by the end of the year.

Hoeben notes that Océ was one of the last big printer firms to move its production to lower costs markets. This he explains is because Océ is not mass product focused but zooms in more on customized solutions. However, the decision was made about two and a half years ago to start manufacturing printers in Asia (specifically Malaysia). The decision was made not to set up production facilities in China because of intellectual property issues. However, Hoeben says that Vietnam is another country that is very promising for them and which they are considering as a place to set up manufacturing facilities. They are already enjoying booming business in the country. This says a lot about the company as just two years ago, they had no distributor in Vietnam. This is why, Hoeben says, that the company is not just focusing on well-developed countries, but the emerging markets too

Hoeben adds that to better serve the region, Océ has divided the region into 3 portions: West Asia (comprising for example India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka); Middle Asia (for example, countries such as Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia) and East Asia (like China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea and Japan). "To succeed in Asia, we look at each country and see which model suits it. There is no one rule when it comes to looking for distributors. Each country has its own set of ways and needs to be approached differently, and this same principle applies to our distributors. Our distributors have the local expertise and knowledge as well as their customers trust and confidence

A golden rule is applied to distributors in the same country - Océ ensures that they target the company's different printing segments. "This reduces the risk of channel conflict. It is not viable to depend on just one distributor, but at the same time, we also don't want to suffer from over-exposure. It is vital to strike a balance here but achieving this balance is usually tricky," explains de Louw

An example he gives is India, where Océ has 1 very big distributor. "It's great working with this distributor, but to expand and have more foothold in different areas in India, we may have to get another distributor," he says.

Hoeben emphasizes again the key role that Asia plays in the company's vision and strategy. Océ is on expansion mode in this region - both internally as well as with its partner network. In Singapore for example, the company anticipates to grow its headcount to approximately 250 by mid 2009 (it now has around 125 people). On the partner scene, the company has been working with carefully selected contract manufacturers. Since Océ is very reliant on its partner network, Hoeben notes how the company is keenly aware at all times of the need to move forward with business partners who apply sustainability policies and principles similar to their own. In addition, Océ is also keen on getting more local developers on board.

In line with is strong focus on the distributor model, in 2006, Océ developed an International Partner Program to cement ties with its distribution partners. This program is being rolled out this year in selected countries.

All partners undergo a rigorous selection process to ensure that they are adequately representing Océ's brand assets. Hoeben points out that in many cases the company's distributors and resellers have represented them for several decades even. However, Océ continuously monitors all its partners to ensure that standards are never compromised.

"This is not just a question of monitoring, it is a true two-way relationship with Océ advising and supporting our partners in the development of their businesses.

de Louw adds that establishing the Océ brand is important for the company. "When it comes to our brand, we want to be known and recognized as the ‘BMW of print'. The way we do this, he says, is via our partners, through marketing activities such as exhibitions and fairs, where we know who the target audience will be."

Commenting on another reason for its success, Hoeben says that Océ ensures that they always get up close and personal with their partners, customers and prospects. "We are very targeted in our sales and establishing relationships, and this translates not only in the direct space, but also with our distributors who are also extremely relationship focused. We all work hard on understanding our customers and sell through trust and continuity, In fact, more than 90% of our current customers renew their contracts with Océ. We believe in combining the Asian focus on business with the European way of ensuring the ‘human touch".

According to de Louw, it has always been Océ's policy to pay a great deal of attention to the well-being of the users of its products, as a strong productivity-enhancing factor. The result is a series of characteristic properties that make Océ-designed machines quite popular with users: low-emissions, low noise and maximum user friendliness. This is one of the things that de Louw believes makes the company stand out from its competition. "This, as well as the company's emphasis on quality and the fast delivery of prints effectively," he adds. Also a differentiator, Océ's belief in and understanding of the importance of workflow, which is why the company has a whole range of services which Hoeben says they are constantly fine-tuning.

Both Hoeben and de Loew are confident that business will continue to soar and Océ's star will continue to shine brightly in Asia. "Our philosophy to always be innovative makes us leaders in our space of wide formats (about 40% worldwide is printed using Océ equipment) and continuous feed (for example in Singapore, we have 80% market share here). When it comes to printing and document management for professionals, we want to go beyond the ordinary," they state.◊