Company director Martin Smyth explained that over the last year, Network Architects had found itself selling a lot of kit, which was not what the principals had set out to do. ‘The reason we set up is, we didn’t want to become a standard reseller, we were originally a consultancy. Hardware is complementary to what we do, but it’s not core,’ he said.
To make the division clear, a new Web-only company has been formed — imaginatively called Pushing Tin — that will handle all product sales to new and existing customers. Buyers can visit www.pushingtin.ie and choose from a range of products that includes hardware, software, networking gear, peripherals, media and entertainment systems.
Pushing Tin plans to reduce its overheads by selling online, but in so doing, to pass on these savings to its customers rather than retaining additional profits for itself. ‘We’re cutting the margins quite fine,’ said Smyth. The Website is constantly being updated and not all products were listed at press time, new items are being uploaded regularly and the site is continually price checked. Currently, customers can order and track the status online. Future developments for the site include secure login facilities for registered customers, allowing them to order using official purchase order numbers. The company is also encouraging new customers to register for a credit account as it claims this will lead to a smoother ordering process.
The company Website has the tagline ‘best of breed without the greed’, meaning that it plans to supply products from well known manufacturers without charging high prices. According to Smyth, the company has agreements in place with all of the distributors for next day shipping. ‘As soon as we know a product is leaving the distributor, we update the site,’ he said. This also means that the company does not have to invest in large physical storage space, as the products don’t have to reside at its premises before being sent to customers.
Former Moresoft staffer Mark Feldman is heading up Pushing Tin. The company has one full time employee and three part time. ‘Pushing Tin will be an entity that doesn’t need too many bodies,’ said Smyth. Pushing Tin has set itself a minimum of half a million euro target for product sales in the upcoming calendar year.
As well as carrying products from other manufacturers, the company is also launching an own-brand combined LCD monitor and TV tuner and plans to secure master reseller or distributor status for it.
17/04/2003
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