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One of the prime focus areas for SES is to be able to deliver the same kind
of service to its customers in C and D-class cities, as it is for its customers
in metros
SES has been in the news more for the wrong reasons like the ban in
Panipat. Why so?
We were for a long time not letting any news out, as we wanted to
consolidate.
The ban in Panipat was hyped-up. Why should someone ban us? If I buy from XYZ
vendor and sell it to a dealer, in that case, neither the product nor the
technology is mine. Once the customer gives me the cheque, then our transaction
is over. So there cannot be any dispute between the customer and me. If there is
a warranty issue, it is with the vendor and even if there is some technology
issue, then that too is with the vendor. I only make the particular product
available to the dealer. All of these are very small issues and they are much
localized.
Recently, the channel associations banned Lenovo in Amravati, and then
there was a similar ban in Goa, etc. Do you think that the channel dynamics have
changed?
These bans are temporary. Ultimately they fizzle out. Even if someone stops
buying a particular product, there are others who will continue buying the same
product. If the aggrieved party is more vocal then it results in a ban being
imposed. A ban imposed in a particular town or region doesn't affect the entire
country. If the aggrieved party is less vocal then it will settle it with the
vendor with talks.
There are distributors who are now isolating themselves from the
post-sales support. Is SES also looking at moving away from this headache of RMA?
We moved RMA out of SES four years ago. Ultima is handling the RMA for SES.
Where the vendor does not want to handle the RMA, we have taken the
responsibility of handling the RMA ourselves. This gives a lot of comfort to the
small customers, who are assured that if there is some problem then sales
personnel from Ultima will sort it out. So our focus is definitely to improve
the RMA for these products. For other products where the vendor is handling the
RMA, the customer directly approaches the vendor for any problem related to
post-sales support.
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Kurien Chandy
CEO, SES Technologies |
What are the trends one can look forward to from SES?
There is a lot of emphasis given to the warranty by the management. The
objective is to give across-the-counter replacement. I wouldn't say that we are
doing that
100 percent as yet but we are on our way there.
Other focus is on working in a small way on the enterprise segment. Our core
strength has been reach. We plan to give that additional value to the customer
by going to remotest areas where generally distributors do not venture.
What is SES doing to advance partners in the C and D-class cities?
The partners in C and D-class cities are equally aware of technology as the
partners in the metros. Now they would be looking at getting the same level of
service that the partners in the metros get. The partners in Saharanpur need to
go to Delhi for services. Now, when we are located at Saharanpur, we can attend
them better. We have branches that identify potential customers in these areas.
Is SES business still component dominated?
SES business is 35 to 40 percent component, 30 percent boxes like HCL,
Toshiba and rest from cables, etc. It is more than just components.
Are you continuing with your own brand?
We are not pushing our own brand of PCs. The desktop business is anyway
slowing down due to the increase in sale of laptops. So we are focusing on
selling other people's brand.
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