Over the years I have trained many people who did not even know what AV was when they started. I introduced them to the industry. I showed them how sound works, how a system is designed, how to commission it and how to talk to a client. Some of them worked for me at PRO AV Africa. Later, some left and opened their own companies.
At PRO AV Africa, everything we do is built on long-term relationships: with the manufacturers we represent, with the clients who trust our designs, and with the integrators who install them. A project ends. A good relationship carries on to the next one, and the one after that.
So this article is not a complaint. It is about the relationships that went quiet, and why I think most of them deserve another chance.
Leaving is normal
People grow. They want their own name on the door, and that is good for them and good for the industry. The same thing happens in IT, in security and in almost every technical field: someone learns a sector inside a company, then goes out and starts their own.
Many companies around the world protect themselves with a non-compete clause. If the company trained you and invested in you, you agree not to work in the same sector for a year or two after you leave. Courts usually only enforce these clauses when they are reasonable in time and scope, and I am not writing about contracts anyway. With or without such a clause, people leaving to start their own business is fine with me.
My question is a different one.
We are on the same side of the table
What I find hard is when someone leaves to start their own company and the relationship ends with it. Some of the people we trained stopped working with us completely, and a few started competing with us.
That should never be necessary, because a distributor and a system integrator are not competitors. PRO AV Africa does not install. Every system we supply is installed by an integrator. We need integrators to win projects, and integrators need a distributor with stock, support and training behind them.
Some of the companies that left us were given demo equipment at no cost. Some were given showroom setups so they could show clients. They were trained for free. Some of them still went a different way. I have thought about it a lot, and I would rather talk about it openly than stay silent.
“You are expensive”
The most common reason I hear is price. Some former partners decided at some point that we are on the high side, and since then they do not even ask us for a quote.
But prices change. Exchange rates move, brands run promotions, and new products and new brands come in all the time. A price you saw two years ago tells you nothing about today.
Then there are those who go to Dubai and buy our own brands, the same products we distribute, from someone else. Yes, a box from Dubai can be cheaper than a box from a local distributor. Here is what the price difference pays for:
- Local stock. Holding stock in Kampala costs money, but it means the project does not wait six weeks for shipping.
- Warranty. Products bought outside the official channel are often not covered by the local warranty, and some are versions made for another region.
- Spare parts and standby units. When something fails, we replace it here instead of sending it abroad.
- Support. Our engineers back up the integrator when there is a problem they cannot solve on site.
- Training. The same training that built many of these companies in the first place.
None of this is free to run. When an integrator buys elsewhere, they still expect the support. And when there is a problem with a product we did not supply, the client still calls the brand, and the brand calls us.
There was always another way
I understand the wish to win projects. Every integrator wants to come in at the right price. But if you think our price is too high for a project, the answer is simple: call us.
- Tell us the client’s budget, and we will see what we can do to get you into the range.
- Buy some items from us and source others elsewhere, if that is what makes the project work.
- Register the project with us, so we protect you and do not give the same pricing to anyone else bidding for it.
- Bargain with us. We would rather have the conversation than lose the project in silence.
Losing a sale is part of business. Losing a relationship over a sale we never even knew about is a waste for both sides.
What a good relationship looks like
A relationship has two sides, so here is what I believe each side can expect from the other.
From us, as the distributor: fair and current pricing, local stock, warranty and spare parts, technical support on site and on the phone, training, demo equipment, and protection on the projects you bring to us.
From the integrator: ask us first, be open about the budget, talk to us before buying the same brands elsewhere, and keep the door open even when a project goes another way.
The door is open
Start your own company and grow as big as you can. I will be proud of that. If you are one of the people who learnt the trade with us and went your own way, take this as an invitation. Call me, come and see what is new in the showroom, or ask us for a price on your next project.
Our relationships with manufacturers and clients have lasted because both sides kept investing in them. I would like the same with every integrator in this market, including the ones we lost along the way.
Talk to us at PRO AV Africa or message me on WhatsApp. Relationships in this industry last longer than any one project, and they are worth more.
Photos: Pexels.
