Page 48 - Print 21 Magazine March-April 2019

Digital Business
Digital
delivering
Kwik Kopy franchisee Daniel McKenzie is seeing growth from a customer-focused approach, with its Fuji Xerox cutsheet and wide format Roland DG XR-640 print and cut, reports Wayne Robinson.
With a father and
an uncle both running Kwik Kopy franchises, it was
a likely bet that Daniel McKenzie would also step up
to the plate, and a stint in his father’s Neutral Bay business gave him the essential ingredient to run a print shop - passion.
He says, “I loved every bit of
the business, and I could see how customer relations were key to the success of the modern printshop. Working in Neutral Bay gave me an appreciation of doing a great job for a customer, and how satisfying it is to meet and exceed their expectations.”
After eight years there, McKenzie was ready for the next step: to have his own business. The opportunity came up virtually next door with
the under-performing Miller Street franchise in the corporate hotspot
of North Sydney – however, of the 100 stores in the Kwik Kopy network it was ranked number 100, with an owner who was over it and no staff. Undaunted and with the passion he had honed, McKenzie took on the store. For the first six months it was just him and a small Xerox printer doing everything from the design to the printing, the finishing, the sales, and the management, working long hours to take the business forward.
Key of course was winning new clients, and McKenzie took the approach of developing relationships with potential customers, taking them for coffee, discussing what their needs were, getting close to them and staying close. He says,
“We offered a great service, quality print with fast turnaround.” That approach of servicing the clients has seen handsome results: some
of McKenzie’s early customers have moved jobs once or twice – given the nature of the corporate world which his store services – and have taken
48 Print21 MARCH/APRIL 2019
him as their print supplier of choice into their new companies.
Today McKenzie has five other employees and that passion runs throughout the team, as does the imperative to serve the customer. He says, “When a client comes in we always take time to sit down with them – nothing is more important.”
The print production equipment has been upgraded significantly: today there is a Fuji Xerox Versant 3100 and a Versant 80, along with inhouse laminating and a range
of finishing equipment. McKenzie says, “I am tight on doing everything inhouse, the more we can keep in here the better. We also modify equipment to suit our needs.” Through this approach to self sufficiency, the store now has spot UV and foiling.
“All the staff here are passionate about the work, we want to do the best job we can for the customer, and in the time frame they want it.” — Daniel McKenzie
“All the staff here are passionate about the work. We want to do the best job we can for the customer, and in the time frame they want it. If that means we work late
then that is what we do, same day turnaround is not uncommon here,” says McKenzie.
The approach is clearly paying off: the Miller Street store is now one of the top ten Kwik Kopy franchisees and, two years ago, took out the franchisee of the year award. Buying into a franchise is not everyone’s
cup of tea, but McKenzie is a big fan, particularly of the support. “When it comes to IT and to marketing Kwik Kopy has been superb, and really good value,” he says. “Its marketing campaigns have been excellent for us, and the software it provides
is tested and proven. It means that as a franchise owner I do not have to spend time investigating, installing and managing IT, leaving me free to concentrate on business development.”
Part of the development of McKenzie’s store has been in wide format printing where the passion appears strongly, with the company taking on a range of jobs that many smaller printers would baulk at, including vehicle wraps.
From the early days McKenzie had a Canon aqueous printer to knock out sales posters and the like, but
a year ago it moved into serious
wide format with a Roland XR-640 1.65m wide eco solvent printer, which can print for both indoor and outdoor applications. McKenzie says, “We could see the opportunity. The demand was there, although
we didn’t realise how strong that demand would be.”
Moving into eco solvent with its myriad applications is a big move, and McKenzie prepared with the help of the vendor Roland DG, and by learning lessons from the Kwik Kopy Artarmon store which was also into eco solvent. Once the printer was installed, the demand was instant – in fact, the first job almost paid for the cost of the printer.
McKenzie says, “The installation of the Roland DG has taken us into a whole new space which we did not expect. We thought we would be printing a lot of labels, but the demand has been for a large range of applications: everything from wallpaper, to vehicle graphics, to floor graphics, to outdoor signage.”
Five years after taking over the store McKenzie has shown that, with passion and commitment
to customer service, and a determination to move forward, print offers great business opportunities for those who dare. 21
Wide demand: Daniel McKenzie with the Roland
DG XR-640 print and cut solution