"We, at Canon India, are driven by innovation and strive to provide goods with superior technology developments and innovation"

In a chat with VARINDIA, C Sukumaran, Director- Consumer Systems Products and Imaging Communication Products, Canon India discusses about the present IT landscape and the best practices adopted by the company, the differentiating factors in the competitive technology space, channel initiatives and much more

Today, organizations are striving to modernize their infrastructure to stay ahead of the competition, kindly share some of the best practices by the enterprises.
Today’s rapidly accelerating business landscape has made digital transformation an imperative. Enterprises are experiencing major changes, from brick-and-mortar retailers experimenting with new business models to compete with online counterparts, to banks expanding their digital footprint to deliver financial services to underserved communities and beyond.

It has become vital for enterprises to streamline and equip the old business models to become more successful by racing "with the machine" rather than against it. Business can be made simple if enterprises provide best-in-class goods and solutions to their customers that provide a complete, consistent, and automated experience. As a result, companies that invest in technology and hire higher-skilled individuals are expected to gain the most during the pandemic. 

In the competitive technology landscape, what are the key initiatives taken by Canon to differentiate in the market?
We, at Canon India, are driven by innovation and strive to provide goods with superior technology developments and innovation in all three domains: cost efficiency, speed, and simplicity of use, in keeping with our corporate motto, ‘Delighting You Always.'

With a strong customer base in India, for both our inkjet and laser businesses, it has been our constant endeavour to boost our presence and enhance top-of-the-mind recall among consumers. In line with the evolving requirements of our customers, we continue to bring forth products backed by innovation with a ‘full lineup strategy’. This is to cater to the diverse needs and different buying capacities of consumers and enterprises. Through our offerings, we have always strived to reach out to customers across the country and access prospective markets through both physical and online outreach initiatives.  Along with our best-in-class product offering, we feel that a strong consumer connection is critical to the company's growth.

With regards to our camera business, we continue to refine our diverse imaging technologies based on core optical technology while further strengthening and expanding the EOS series of cameras and RF/EF series of lenses, opening up new avenues of imaging to meet the needs of increasingly diverse users and to promote the culture of photography and videography.

How is the partner program different from the Camera and the Printer business? 
Channel partners have played an important role in our success story and as one of our key stakeholders, they have enabled us to strengthen our foothold in the industry and reach out to a diverse range of customers. With a strong network of 100 distributors and 3000 channel partners across the length and breadth of the country, we endeavour to further consolidate our regional presence. Regional penetration is one of our core focus areas as we want to make our products and services available to the farthest geographies in the country. Moving forward too, we will ensure our presence on platforms where our customers are present, aligning with our corporate motto of always 'delighting our customers.

We are helping our B2B channel partners build both scale and competencies in new technologies, for our SOHO/SME/Government customers. We are expanding our B2B footprint in this market very rapidly. We are working very closely with SIs and VAR on large projects both in SME and government space. We have also expanded our regional presence by opening 194+ PIXMA Zones and 830 + OIC Signature Stores. The primary objective is to increase the availability of Canon Printers and genuine consumables across India along with Brand Presence. 

For our channel partners in the camera segment, we have been looking at being accessible across all channels including e-commerce, along with constantly reviewing the distribution and retail structure. While we are ensuring easy and quick access to Canon products and services for our consumers, we are also mindful of our channel partners’ profitability and long-term sustenance. We are actively exploring new business opportunities from complementing products and brands, which will help our channel partners expand their product portfolio.

Regional penetration is one of our core focus areas as we want to make our products and services available to the farthest geographies in the country. We are taking every possible step to fight this pandemic and help our partners during these tough times.

What are the new challenges that you foresee regarding Remote working trends, how Canon is ready to address this opportunity?
At Canon, we believe that every crisis also presents an opportunity for businesses to think differently and adapt to the changing landscape. We see more possibilities than difficulties as office printing moves to home printing. Work from Home and Study from Home, for example, has transformed the usage pattern from clients visiting copy shops for their print needs to have a fast fix solution at the convenience of their own home. The introduction of virtual schools has boosted the popularity of home printers, as parents anticipate printing learning materials and assignments for their children. Working from home also demands a high-speed cloud-enabled network printer and Wi-Fi-enabled ink tank printers that give them the ease to initiate printouts directly from their smartphones and laptops.

While the pandemic affected the outdoor activity, there is immense scope of photography and videography as well even while staying indoors. The changing consumption habits of audience post pandemic and OTT content have revolutionized the way content is created, diffused, streamed and consumed. The percentage of video traffic has increased greatly across all channels, which has made video blogging rise in popularity as a form of both entertainment and marketing.

While there were challenging scenarios for customers, however, these are opportunities for us to help them adapt to these challenging times by offering them an efficient solution through our products and solutions.

How the VARS/partners can benefit from various initiatives of Canon?
As one of our essential stakeholders, channel partners have helped us expand our position in the market and reach out to a broader spectrum of clients. Our partners have played an imperative role in strengthening brand connect, reaching out to customers through CIS stores, PIXMA Zones and OIC shops.

To help our channel partners during the pandemic, we have facilitated training sessions for them and their sales teams to assist them better grasp changing patterns and how to adapt to the new normal. We have been examining the situation on a regular basis as well as actively exploring new business opportunities that will help our channel partners expand their product portfolio.