Seasoned distributor becomes "a disti for the people"

09.08.2005
Von Nicolas Callegari

Last week specialist IT distributor, Axiz, unveiled a new look and purpose for its 16-year-old distribution business. According to the South African company, this move aims to redefine its market position from a specialist component-distribution company to a trusted advisor.

Axiz is aiming to ultimately shift the perception of the distribution sector from box-droppers to value-added providers, something that the majority of local distributors have been talking about for years.

Axiz CEO, Anthony Fitzhenry, says that, since 1997, the company has been working at driving human prosperity through employment equity initiatives and (in 2000) its Ledibogo employee ownership program, which now has some 500 stakeholders.

"We have often been asked how to maintain sustainable growth, which prompted us to look at the bigger picture, especially looking forward to what the future may hold, and to combine IT and intelligence," he says.

This, he says, extends the distributor"s responsibilities to look at environmental issues (futurist growth), employee and stakeholder well-being (ruthless growth) and going further than merely tolerating cultural diversity.

Fitzhenry says Axiz" promise of technology intelligence is not just academic. Axiz will use a level of intelligence in every aspect of its business. Understandably, delivering technology intelligence and becoming a trusted advisor is largely dependent on the human aspect.

"It is vital to incite intelligence in everything that we do. Our vision, to champion human prosperity, becomes a vehicle for Axiz to unite technology with intelligence, and, ultimately, to deliver on our promise," Fitzhenry adds.

Rebrand

In related news, Axiz will be re-branding its Kalliba and Alpica lines of locally produced memory.

In keeping with its newly launched overall brand strategy, Axiz has consolidated all its local products under one brand, and, as a result, its memory product offerings, incorporating Kalliba and Alpica, will be branded Axiz.

The re-brand will also include the flash products, such as the USB Flash MP3 player, USB Flash Hi - Speed and USB Flash Full Speed, Axiz says.