Just when you thought you’d seen the last Web site peddling office supplies to the home office market, along comes another.
Computer Marketplace Inc., Corona, CA, has launched a subsidiary, OfficeExpress.com (www.officeexpress.com), which offers more than 20,000 brand-name office products. CEO Bejan Aminifard thinks the market is still quite ripe for small-scale outfits.
“Actually, the timing is the most crucial factor,” he says. Room for More
Despite the great number of sites run by major retailers and direct marketers like Office Depot and Office Max, and dozens of smaller ones, Aminifard asserts the office supplies market is far from saturated, especially when compared with those of computer hardware and software manufacturers.
Aminifard backs up his claim with the story of his new firm’s sister company TechStore.com, which went from nothing in 1997 to $6.5 million in revenue its first year. He’s hoping for similar results from OfficeExpress.com.
TechStore.com’s strategy has involved automating ordering, fulfillment and other necessary processes while keeping costs to a minimum. It has just 13 employees, Aminifard notes.
Ad Mix
Though reluctant to discuss OfficeExpress.com’s marketing plans, Aminifard says the company will probably advertise in traditional media, and on Web sites where it’s likely to reach some of the 40 million customers who constitute the home office market.
The firm is thinking of running online banners and setting up links to related sites where smaller scale buyers of office supplies are likely to go.
As with many successful Web merchants, Aminifard is focusing on building market share for OfficeExpress.com over the next year or so.
Computer Marketplace chairman Bob Wallace believes that OfficeExpress.com represents a substantial development in his firm’s overall business plan.
“With a product line that complements our technology product offerings at TechStore.com, we can now effectively target the SOHO community with a more complete set of solutions,” he says.
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