Oh this hurts. A little.

Recently we have been tied to the whipping post in regards to price increases in office supplies such as ink and toner.  The increases are rarely more than a dollar or three, but they occur often.  Somewhere around 1-3 times a month.  Whether the blame is put on a natural disaster like an earthquake in Japan or issues such as cost of materials causing increases in prices, we end up taking the brunt.  We can’t pass on every increase to our customers, it is not practical.  In a slim margin business such as office machine supplies including ink and toner this hurts.  Especially when we live in a world where a $70K a year head of purchasing will spend a few hours chasing after a $2.50 savings.  That small savings may be realized 6 times a year, for a total cost savings of $15.  At around $33/hour salary that savings just cost the company this purchaser works for about $85 annually.

Ouch.

So every little price increase chews on the bottom line of the vendor.  That makes us as the vendor become choosey about our customers.  Do we want to deal with purchasing departments that are unaware of the error in chasing $2.50 savings?  We have decided against.  Do we want to deal with purchasing departments that understand that if the pricing is close but the service and delivery is better than the opportunity cost far outweighs a meager $2.50 savings?  A resounding yes is heard.

If you prefer the $2.50 savings, perhaps you should ask yourself and your cheap vendor some questions:

1)      What if the ink/toner was ordered wrong?

2)      Restocking fees?

3)      What if the ink/toner fails?

4)      What if this failed ink or toner messes up my machine?

5)      How long is too long for down time?

6)      Who pays for shipping?

7)      How fast is shipping?

8)      I ran out of toner, how soon can you get here?

9)      Can I pay on terms?

10)   I don’t know how to install this toner, can you personally help me?

So if you are the purchaser that understands this blog, feel free to contact us.

Comments are closed.