MD and founder Robert Franco explains that GSW has always ensured that customers in South and sub-Saharan Africa have access to a one-stop shop of reliable, durable and top-quality print and cut solutions and services that match their requirements.
‘We pride ourselves on providing best in class printing, cutting and finishing technologies, consumables, media, a full turnkey project management service and after-sales support for brands like Mimaki, EFI and Kongsberg,’ he states. ‘In the first instance, this is part of our strategy to remain at the forefront of introducing new products from our technology partners every year, which can help our customers. Secondly, our team also views itself as ideally placed to become customers’ growth solution partners, as we play an integral part in their businesses, helping them make their mark in the digital commercial and packaging print industries. GSW’s 25 years of digital technology experience ensures that anyone wanting to enter the digital production space can do so successfully.’
Rob emphasises that the foundations of these successful relationships are possible due to GSW’s broad product offering and partnership approach, which enables the team to recommend the right suite of products to the right customers at the lowest total cost of ownership.
‘We start by taking the time to fully understand customers’ requirements, advising them on where and how they can use the available range of technologies, and then utilising detailed costing spreadsheets to accurately analyse the cost of ownership of the equipment. These calculations take important aspects such as media and ink usage, cost of maintenance and expected indirect costs into consideration,’ he explains. ‘We love being able to drive profitability for customers and as these are mission-critical products, it is vital to add value by reducing overtime and downtime, increasing operational efficiency and maximising versatility, so that customers can unleash their creativity and uncover new income avenues.’
Furthermore, Rob believes that GSW’s branches and demo centres in Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban and its sub-dealer network in South Africa and 26 African countries set it apart as the only distributor in Africa able to offer such unique solutions. ‘All GSW teams are trained and certified according to global standards to market, sell, install and support the various technologies throughout the continent,’ he notes.
‘GSW has become the African market leader in grand- and large-format printing. This motivates us to keep working hard to meet these customers’ evolving needs and to expand into underrepresented territories,’ Rob concludes.
Click here to read this article in the E-mag or here to view GSW’s 25th Anniversary Profile.
