By : Ameen Kadry
In August 2023, Seiko Epson Corporation established a new sales company, Epson Middle East FZCO (EME), reflecting the tremendous potential to accelerate expansion in key markets including Africa, Caucasus, Central Asia, the Middle East, Moldova, Türkiye, and Ukraine, centrally managed from a regional office in Dubai, UAE.
Epson's newly established EME sales company has set forth an ambitious goal to accelerate its revenue growth and footprint over the next five years. It plans to achieve this goal by expanding its presence in the core domains of printing, scanning, and visual display solutions.
Neil Colquhoun has been appointed as President, Epson EME, after more than a decade with the company.
“Establishing Epson EME demonstrates our commitment to customers and partners in the region, that we will continue to invest and grow our presence in all key markets, from Africa to the Middle East to Central Asia, while centralising operations in our Dubai-based office.
This investment will give us the agility and ability to address the changing needs of customers in these dynamic, fast-growing markets with our key areas of printing, scanning, and visual display solutions.”
The company's progress is expected to gain momentum in line with the wider region's adoption of sustainable technologies, with particular emphasis on Epson's business inkjet and ink tank printing systems, a cornerstone of Epson’s business globally.
These solutions boast advantages such as lower power consumption, reduced CO2 and plastic waste, compared to laser printers, and heightened efficiency thanks to Heat-Free technology.
Colquhoun added: “Epson product portfolio provides businesses and consumers with the opportunity to switch to sustainable technology solutions.”
Epson reported sales increases of more than 40% in the Middle East and Turkey, almost a third in Africa, and around 10% in Central Asia, Caucasus and Ukraine for FY2022. The company anticipates a huge demand for Epson technology solutions such as the increased scanning and automation needs for digitised workflows in various business sectors.
The continued expansion of world-class professional sports and entertainment events, taking place across the GCC, Africa and into Central Asia is also introducing greater demand for projection technologies and immersive retail experiences.
With more than 250 Epson employees currently in place, Epson forecasts an increase of 45% in new hires, as the EME entity becomes operational in April 2024. The recruitment drive will focus on nationalisation, diversity and inclusivity, with women already accounting for up to 40% of the workforce.
The largest Epson offices will be in the UAE, South Africa, and Türkiye, complemented by operations in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Kenya, Nigeria, Israel, Kazakhstan, and Ukraine. There are also plans to expand and enhance Epson’s network of resellers and distributors in the region.
