Originally Posted in the Holland Sentinel on February 19, 2012. View the original article here.
While giving a tour of his company, Carlton Technologies owner and CEO Ryan Bracken held up two computerized scanners— the type of device used in warehouses, grocery stores and delivery services everywhere.
One looked beat-up, the other, after being cleaned, re-painted and fitted with a new keyboard, looked nearly brand new.
“A lot of that is removing, for the consumer, the stigma of used equipment,” Bracken said.
The company operating out of a Holland Township location — is growing as more businesses turn to having existing electronics serviced, or buying re-furbished electronics, instead of purchasing expensive new models.
“In a softer economy, companies tend to look for alternatives to what they’re doing,” Bracken said.
The company this week announced a new multimedia website and slogan — “We Make Things Work. Better” — as a way of branding itself as a smart choice for businesses everywhere.
“We’ve also done some re-branding for our service products and service plans,” Bracken said. The company sells service contracts for mobile computing devices, such as the handheld scanners, as well as doing one-time repairs and selling refurbished devices.
The service work is time-sensitive — “these devices tend to be mission-critical devices,” Bracken says — so Carlton guarantees a certain turnaround time for customers to get their devices up and running again.
“It’s a constant flow of equipment,” he said. Technicians’ workstations are surrounded by boxes of parts so they can work on the devices without getting up or searching for the right part.
The business strategy seems to be working.
Carlton Technologies this week announced 150 percent growth in total revenue over the past three years. And since Carlton moved to Holland Township in February 2007, the number of repairs performed per year has increased by more than 130 percent.
Also since coming to Holland, Carlton has picked up a number of local customers, including Spartan Stores, Gentex, Steelcase and Haworth.
“The level of service Carlton Technologies provides is essential to our company both by reducing downtime for our 500-plus devices and in saving us money,” said Jim Morse of Haworth.
