technologyreseller.co.uk DISTRIBUTION 27 continued... Mobile device distributor Eurostar Global Electronics is laying the ground for a major expansion of its service offering with the opening of a new 43,000 square foot warehouse Room to grow of a logistics service provider to the wider technology sector.” Mobile device distribution What Eurostar Global currently does is stock, supply and distribute smartphones and tablets from leading brands to a variety of channels, including distribution partners, 500-plus airtime management resellers across the UK, larger retailers and the insurance sector. It also sells to overseas customers via a European hub in the Netherlands. It is a direct vendor partner of OnePlus, TCL, Alcatel, Sony, CAT, OPPO and Emporia and can source and supply other leading brands, including Samsung and Apple, from the open market in Europe more cheaply than through authorised UK channels. “If a reseller buys mobile devices, they need to talk to us because that's what we do. We are probably the reseller’s number one partner in the UK. There's no two ways about it. We supply them with credit terms and we supply them with a suite of bespoke services to support their business,” says Carnall. This includes software-related services, as well as hardware-based ones, such as pre-configuring devices under a mobile device management system. A key part of Eurostar Global’s offer to existing customers is reverse logistics “When you reach capacity in your existing premises and you've got a lot more you want to do, the only way you’re going to do that is if you grow, and you can't grow if you don’t have the space.” So says Peter Carnall, Managing Director of Eurostar Global Electronics, standing in the centre of the mobile and tablet distributor’s brand-new 43,000 square foot warehouse in Stoke-on-Trent – 50,000 sq ft if you include the mezzanine floor soon to be installed at one end. Since taking out a 10-year lease on the facility a little over 12 months ago, Carnall has been thinking day and night about the internal layout of the space, the flow of product through the facility, the automation that will allow the company to pick and pack with accuracy and speed, air-locks and other security arrangements and all the other things it takes to run a modern distribution business. Most of all, he has been thinking about all that extra capacity – 50,000 sq ft of space compared to 9,000 sq ft across two sites plus some third-party storage space that he has at his disposal today – and how he can use that to expand Eurostar Global’s service offering and kick-start an exciting new chapter in its history. Eurostar Global has enjoyed impressive growth since it was established as a mobile and tablet distribution business in 2007, especially in a three-year period from 2017-2020 when turnover increased from £35 million to around £120 million. After that, revenue started to plateau, largely due to the physical limitations of the company’s premises. “We could go out and get another 20 contracts, but we wouldn’t have been able to service them because our existing facility is at its storage capacity. We can't physically bring in any more stock or send any more stock out and we are already over-spilling into third-party sites for storage, which becomes a bit difficult. “We’re hoping that after moving into the new site we'll once again see significant incremental growth because it will allow us not only to do more of what we currently do but also to be much more where it takes back used devices from resellers and retailers, wipes them of data, resets them, reconditions them, grades them and then re-distributes them for re-sale or re-use in secondary device channels, such as insurance, where they can be used as replacement devices should an insured product be damaged. “The other thing we use these devices is for what I call advanced replacements. If a customer has signed up to our advanced replacement scheme and their device stops working, we will quite often utilise returned and graded devices that are in pristine condition as an advanced replacement device. Effectively, we recycle our own products within our own supply chain.” Third-party logistics The extra capacity provided by EuroStar Global’s larger premises will enable it to take on additional business in these core areas. It will also enable it to leverage its expertise in warehousing and fulfilment and start offering third-party logistics (3PL) services, including reverse logistics, to a broader range of technology vendors for the first time. “Within the group, there is a logistics business that's bespoke to dealing with technology products that require special care, security and management, a clean environment and dedicated systems. Up until now, all we've done is service our Peter Carnall
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