When Amrod released its Total Solution service in 2017, it revolutionised the promotional products industry in Africa. Previously, licensed resellers of corporate promotional gifts and apparel would have to buy the products and branding processes separately before shipping them off to the end consumer.
With the Total Solution, Amrod pioneered the practice of in-house branding, leveraging its expansive 10,000-square-metre branding facility and warehouse in Johannesburg to become a one-stop destination for more than 16,000 unique promotional products and 18 branding techniques, ranging from subtle debossing to full-colour digital printing.
Amrod’s Johannesburg facility hosts a state-of-the-art showroom designed to showcase the full range of products on offer, plus facilities where resellers can host and present to their clients within a comfortable environment with readily accessible products.
The headquarters also features an industry-leading warehouse management system to improve inventory accuracy and speed up operations, as well as a state-of-the-art conveyor system that moves stock seamlessly to the correct branding department quickly, efficiently and in an automated manner.
This precision and efficiency are crucial in an industry that demands quick turnaround times. Amrod keeps in stock more than R500 million (€25 million) worth of gifting, apparel and headwear items, at cost, and brands more than 150,000 items every day.
Branching out
Also in 2017, just before the year drew to a close, Amrod expanded its own world of brands by acquiring its near-20-year-old competitor Wizard Collective. The acquisition brought Wizard’s 400 unique promotional products, plus its apparel and headwear brand known as Altitude, under the Amrod roof.
Focusing on the value segment, Altitude offers a comprehensive range of apparel and gifting that provides exceptional value for money, combined with Amrod’s unrivalled Total Solution service.
The addition of Altitude built upon the six apparel and headwear brands and 325 styles already offered by Amrod, including aprons, conti suits, T-shirts, golf shirts, workwear, bodywarmers, fleeces, hoodies, tracksuits, sweaters, jackets, beanies, caps and scarves.
The convenience of working with a wholesaler like Amrod, which handles branding in-house and maintains a deep and diverse inventory of products, means that resellers can focus on their primary objective – selling promotional products to corporate clients.
Streamlining processes
Amrod’s expanding network of facilities across Africa makes it even easier to partner with for a wider number of clients. The wholesaler has six facilities in South Africa alone, plus additional locations in Namibia, Botswana, Kenya, Zambia and Nigeria.
The close proximity Amrod maintains with its clients ensures short lead times, meaning end consumers can mount large promotional campaigns without having to wait weeks to receive the branded products they need.
Part of the Total Solution service is that all products are priced in local currencies, so resellers can quote and sell knowing that the cost prices of their goods are complete to include all the relevant duties, transport and branding.
Also, each Amrod facility has its own website, where resellers can monitor stock quantities, place orders, upload artwork and approve job cards. By streamlining these processes and making branded products more accessible to a rising number of businesses, Amrod is raising the profile of the entire promotional products industry in Africa.
This presents a new set of growth opportunities for African brands. According to Promotional Products Association International, 86% of recipients of promotional products remember the brand; 83% are more likely to do business with the brand; and 80% research the brand after receiving the promotional product. Research shows that promotional products offer the highest return on investment of any marketing medium.
Partnering up
Amrod’s success and growth in recent years comes on the heels of an important milestone for the company – the sale of a majority share to The Carlyle Group, one of the world’s largest and most successful investment firms, based in Washington DC.
With extensive South African and African experience and a vast global reach, Amrod’s partnership with this highly respected, internationally renowned brand has helped take the business to the next level, speeding up its geographic expansion, its acquisition of target companies and its entry into new product categories.
Support from The Carlyle Group ensures that Amrod’s Total Solution remains convenient, simple and cost-effective.
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