“We aim to challenge and be a part of the upcoming and growing market”

ProDot is the brand name of Datalink Industrial Corporation based out of New Delhi. ProDot, with branch offices spread across the nation, for the past three decades, has been engaged in the manufacturing and distribution of a wide range of printer consumables and IT peripherals across different regions of India. In the recent years, ProDot witnessed a remarkable growth in the industry. ProDot’s wide range of products includes DMP and LaserJet compatible cartridges, refilling aids, computer peripherals, computer accessories, laptop accessories, photo papers and antivirus products. ProDot staff puts continuous efforts to expand their product-line in the best possible manner. ProDot’s products are specially designed to give value to the customers. In an interaction with Aarushi Rajpal, Director, ProDot about the company’s initiatives and future initiatives.

What are the latest trends in print consumable market and what is ProDot’s focus in the changing market scenario.

The print consumable market has really evolved over the years. There was a time when dot matrix ribbons were the only way we knew how to print. With time though, inkjet inks started picking up. However, now I feel, ink tank printers are the present. With IDC’s (International Data Corporation) reports too stating ink tank printers drive volumes in major 50 cities in India, my belief is just reinforced. The market has become more receptive and responsive towards ink tanks. With this changing market scenario, we at ProDot are someway trying to manufacture inks by ourselves. Some R&D is going on to develop inks that meet and exceed the international benchmarks and compete with the OEM inks and we are slowly getting there. We aim to challenge and be a part of the upcoming and growing market.

Could you describe the brief journey about ProDot?
So far the journey at ProDot has been beautiful. Starting a humble beginning from 100 square feet factory in my house to 50,000 square feet factory in the nature’s basket at Dehradun, it’s just been splendid. The journey so far has been full of trust, collaboration, commitment, excitement and life. Till today, I come with the same enthusiasm as that when I began my work and I feel that romance towards my work would never end. Sometimes, I wonder, this journey has been good, that’s why it’s been successful or it’s been successful, that’s why it’s been good!

Apart from print consumables, how you performed in computer peripherals?
Superb and far more than expected! We are quite hopeful that like our imaging products have made their own mark and identity in this industry, our computer peripherals would also follow their steps and leave a mark behind.

What new products do you plan to add to your portfolio in the immediate future?
Our plan is to add more accessories in the current range and explore the field of CCTV cameras and security. This new vertical of surveillance sounds exciting, let’s see what happens in the future.

Today, in the cut-throat competition, services are important. What kind of service support are you providing?
Service is always important and customer is the king. To service better, all our products bear the tag of replacement and warranty and they can be readily replaced if found defective under normal use. We have taken care of replacement regionally too with giving our big distributors at some 50+ locations some buffer stock to react promptly. Customers can replace their products with repaired products immediately and wouldn’t have to wait and worry about it. After all, ProDot is their trusted IT Partner!

What new initiatives are you taking to energise your channel eco-system in light of changing trends?
A channel grows and works better if people in it function like family. To boost bonding and understanding among our Partners, we organised Dubai Meet where 250 people across pan India flew from different locations to a common destination, Dubai. For the five days that we were all together, it was a blast from enjoying the Desert Safari to Dhow Cruise to Dubai Underwater Zoo & Aquarium to seeing the iconic Burj Khalifa! It was purely a fun trip aimed to strengthen and motivate the channel. It felt family-like throughout because it was the ProDot family together!

Present growth rate and where you want to be in the coming five years?
Our current growth rate would be of around 20-25%. With emerging competition, GST and other hurdles, we hope to maintain it fairly.