B&C: Hi Roger, first of all, thank you for this interview. Can you explain to our readers what your position and role are at Chieftec?
RO: Having started at Chieftec over 9 years ago as a Key Account Manager, I happen to be the head of global sales today so that I am directly responsible for the overseeing and active coordination of all sales and related mktg. operations in Europe, Mid-East and Africa, thereby excluding the DACH region and Poland.
B&C: Chieftec is active since 1990, so we can say that you are a veteran of IT market. During these years Chieftec is grown fast, despite the huge competition, and now it is a big company with over 6000 workers. What is the secret of your success?
RO: Well, at peak times, we actually ran ourt operations with as many as 6000 employees, however, Chieftec has since alligned and optimized its production processes to meet the actual demand and has thus optimized its workforce to now approximately 2000 employees. The secret lies in the combination of a line-up of different factors which, if arranged in the right sequence, results in a positive Brand Awareness. Quality and a stable and competitive pricing policy are just two of many factors as well as the rigid distribution strategy we have implemented ever since so that stock movements are strictly monitored to ensure a constant availability but avoid an over-stock situation which comes with price fluctuations. Basically, we have stayed connected to the ground and have continued to unyieldingly follow the recommendations of our long-termed partners, both in the B2B and B2C segments of market with the result that CHIEFTEC has become a renowned first tier Manufacturer.
B&C: Your name is not well known in Italy, and I struggle to find your products in Italy online shops (even professional shops). On the other hand, in Europe (especially in north Europe) you are well known. What is your market strategy for Italy? Why do you have hard time to be big in Italy?
RO: Indeed, Chieftecs presence in Italy has dwindeled in the last 5 years. This is majorly owing to the economic crunch back in 2009 which impacted some economies stronger than others and thus led to a very price sensitive market environment. Knowing Chieftec and its product range which is in the first instance, dedicated to quality which of course, comes with a related price-tag, the mainstream segment was quickly lost to cheaper competition. Today, Chieftec remains strong in the system integration segment (which includes a wide industrial range as well) and provides high-end solutions. In addition, Chieftec has defined a few new product lines that tailor-fit the mainstream demand as related to price so that currently, we are rebuilding our brand awareness and have a long term goal of penetrating and maintaining a significant position in the mainstream retail segment.
B&C: Today people looks out carefully about the quality of the products (ISO certifications, quality of the materials, etc), but the power of the brand is still decisive in the consumer market. A lot of users prefer to buy a cool brand than a less known brand, even the 2nd has better products. Do you think that you will be able to change this situation, converting Chieftec in a cool brand, or it's not an important achievement at the present moment?
RO: Its always about choices, right? Quality and reliability remains the key issue, followed closely by related after sales service and lastly, the price and so that in as much as the branding does play a very strong role, the end user has the choice between a good name and a good product. In addition, Chieftec has been renowned the last +20 years for its high level of quality and its equilibrum in performance : price ratio so that every enduser with a sense of taste and quality would make the right choice, Chieftec!
B&C: Almost the 100% of your chassis have a professional look (even the Gaming series), and this can reduce the appeal among the younger customers (e.g. gamers). What about a naff case for teenagers? Also, what do you think about the mini PC market?
RO: You are right if you say that we have a rather professional or, as I would put it, a “corporate touch” to our cases. The major reason being that we provide products and services on a world-wide base, covering market regions streching from the Far East over Europe, America, the Middle East and reaching as far as Africa and beyond so that different markets/regions have different definitions of “good looking”. This is why Chieftec focusses much more on the high functionality and high features/specs. of the products, thereby maintaining the design red-line through all products. The mini PC as in NUC (Next Unit of Computing) is being pushed hard by Intel and today, more and more of the first-tier Motherboard manufacturers are jumping unto this train. As a case and PSU manufacturer however, our role is reduced to a minimum considering the fact that the actual value of a NUC solution lies not in the (sometimes plastic) case but more in the MB and CPU installed.
B&C: Chieftec produces a lot of professional stuff, like Rack and server Chassis, and your products are well known for their reliability. Which quality standard do you follow for your products? How much do you spend in R&D?
RO: Thank you for recognising the fact that Chieftec is very strongly positioned in the professional segment with focus on Rack mounts, mini-redundant PSUs and general SMB server solutions. This being explained by the extreme high quality and professional pre- and after sales services. Based on all of this, its obvious that Chieftec manufactures only based on the latest and highest ISO standards. Equally, CE and CB certifications, TÜV, EMS and UL as well as the ERP standards are strictkly adhered to and implemented. How much we spend for R&D? (laugh) Much more than we want to but surely, we do understand the relevance and see ita s a basic necessity to remain abreast of time so that these investments are justified.
B&C: Recently, because of Apple sweated labour news, some people is looking forward to the quality of work in China and other Asian countries. We know that you have a facility in China, so we have to ask: how important is the quality of work of your workers for you?
RO: Chieftec being a Taiwanese company has always had a slightly different approach to this topic, especially with strong links to Europe, where it was very quickly very clear that your employees are your asset. This principle has been implemented since so that our employees in Asia count to some of the best paid and enjoy additional social securities. At this point, I would want to mention that Chieftec is a privately owned company and thus, does not need to yield or succumb to presure from the stock market and related shareholders, pushing for double digit percentage growths year on year (smiles confidently). This gives us the superiority and allows us to act at our pace and thus ensure, that the Work : Life : Efficiency balance is held in equilibrium for all employees.
B&C: The server products market is packed now, due to the presence of a lot of competitors, like Inter-tech, Chenbro, Supermicro, etc. Why someone have to choose you instead of one of your competitors? Which are your strong points?
RO: The server products market is indeed “packed” as you say… I would go a step further and say that the server market is currently one of the few markets segments in Europe that can still boast of growth (smiles) and that explains why more and more companies are branching in, in order to have a share of the cake. What are Chieftecs USPs (unique selling points)? Its the diversity of products that counts. Chieftec solutions are multi-functional so that standard components can be installed into our solutions, thereby extending the possibility to our clients to provide highly economical turnkey solutions with the highest quality. A high level of flexibility is equally given so that customizations for specific projects can be realised to further tailor-fit the products to match the customers demand. In a sentence,”Chieftec provides the market with what it needs, when it needs it and to a market-acceptable price”.
B&C: The retail market is important, but the ODM market is equally important. Which are your professional clients (Usually, the big brand, like Dell, HP, etc. buy the cases for their own server)? Which are your main markets (Asia? USA?)? Do you collaborate with your clients to realize some specific products?
RO: Thats absolutely correct so that we strongly service the ODM/OEM markets accordingly. I however see ita s a breach of trust and none-ethical, if I went ahead to name our OEM/ODM partners. As we say here in Germany, ”a gentleman enjoys and and keeps silent” (smile). Our major markets are the EMEA regions where we are proud to present a widely spun and highly professional network of long-termed distributing partners. Special projects as not only related to ODM/OEM productions remain a key business unit for Chieftec so that international large-scale collaborations are a common practice.
B&C: During the last years you have launched a lot of PSU series. They are as good as the PSU series of Thermaltake, Corsair, Silverstone, etc (I can say that because I have a GPM-850C). Unfortunately your consumer PSU are less known that your consumer Cases. Do you have some plans to improve this situation?
RO: I am glad to know that you have already made the right choice by owning a GPM-850C, a high-end PSU from our retail production. Actually, Chieftec extended its product line-up to include a wide range of high-end PSUs begining 2006 as the demand of quality PSUs was skyrocketing. The brandawareness for our PSUs vary from region to region so that for example, in Russia we rank TOP 2, in Eastern Europe generally TOP 5 while in Western Europe we are listed only TOP 10. The reason are variable and so are the listings. What I can tell you is that we are more than happy with our positions and our strong and world-wide customer base and will continue to do everything humanly possible to maintain the highest quality standards, pre- and after sales services and offer stong and competitve pricings.
B&C: Which are your strategic plans for the near future? Do you think that your catalog is various enough? Or do you think that Chieftec has to enter in new sectors (e.g. cooling systems)?
RO: Our bread and butter have been cases and PSUs! Of course, we offer a vast line of accessories ranging from external boxes, backplanes and case fans but deem it right and necessary, to remain and tow our basic line of business for which our factories are equipped. I agree that the desktops are not exactly on a growing branch in Europe but, the given demand may be sourced in emerging market sas well. Nevertheless, we are constantly evaluating now possibilities and thus, our R&D department never lays fallow.
B&C: Thank you Roger, it has been a pleasure talking with you!
RO: Oh no, I want to thank you for the professional and straight-to-the-point questions which I hope, I have been able to answer to, to your satisfaction (smile). In this respect, the pleasure is mine! God bless!