We are expecting the market to grow between 25-30 percent annually

What are your channel plans?

We operate through a product-based distribution model wherein we have two
national distributors, viz-Redington and IGS for our document scanners and KGS
Microsystems who distribute our microfilm products. We have a total of around 35
resellers who sell Kodak scanners on a regular basis but if you include those
partners who demand our products on a sporadic basis, then our total partner
base would be more than 500 resellers countrywide. We plan to add more partners
this year and plan to increase the frequency of our partner training programs
from once in every quarter to once in every month

What are some of the key market trends that you are seeing?

For high-end production scanners which have a high capacity output, we are
seeing that the key customer verticals include BFSI, Government and Corporate
segments. As far as geographies are concerned, nearly half of the business comes
from the West, reason being that all major financial institutions are based out
of there. In the North we are seeing good traction coming from government
because that is where the seat of power is located. Price sensitivity among
customers for the entry and mid-level range is high, however for production
scanners, quality becomes the focus and that is where Kodak gains the edge over
others like Fujitsu, HP or Canon.

What advice would you give to partners wanting to enter this space?

It is the right time to enter this market as it is still a niche market and
with the kind of growth projections we have estimated, there is huge potential
for everyone involved. On an average, a partner can make healthy margins of
10-15 percent plus there are up selling opportunities in the consumables and
services space. While consumables and spares make up more than 15 percent of the
total market value, services share is even higher at 25 percent.

John Jacob

johnj@cybermedia.co.in