DISTRIBUTOR INTERVIEW

Office Line optimistic about growth in Kuwait

Office Line is a leading player in the Kuwait office products business involved in wholesale and direct sales. The company represents many A-branded products as well as its own label, offering customers a complete range of stationery and office supplies. Dr.Haitham Durbia, Executive Manager, gives insight into Office Line and the Kuwait market.
than going directly to end users. Our three warehouses are open from 7am till 9pm to assure fast delivery and that the best possible service is offered to our customers.

An established market for brands

Demand is good, and our customers trust the brands we distribute for the quality and excellent service behind, says Dr.Haitham Durbia, Executive Manager, Office Line.

Visions & Trends: What are the main activities of Office Line? Dr.Haitham Durbia: Office Line is ranked among the top 5 players in the market as a wholesaler in Kuwait, and we are at the top of the list of companies that specialise in service tenders to leading government and private sector organizations in the country. Visions & Trends: How do you organise your wholesale activities? Dr.Haitham Durbia Our main office and showroom is located in the heart of Kuwait city and the stationery market. We maintain direct contact with stationery distributors, dealers, sub dealers and freelancers that enable us to follow up with their requirements and meet orders. We concentrate more on strengthening our dealers
Office Line is a key player in the Kuwait office products market present at key industry events.

Visions & Trends: What are some of the major European brands you work with and how is the demand for brands in Kuwait? Dr.Haitham Durbia We are the agent and distributors for 3M,Scotch,Post-it, Da-Lite from the USA, Rapesco and PremierGrip from the UK ,Agipa from France, Officepoint from Germany and Hispapel from Spain. We also represent and distribute some well known brands from Asia such as Dollar writing instruments, Eagle , and Datazone. Weve established a very good market for these products and are concentrating more on what we have rather than expanding the same types of products. Demand is good,

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DISTRIBUTOR INTERVIEW

Line during the global crisis? Have you made any changes? Dr.Haitham Durbia The global crisis was tough on everyone at different levels. We didnt have any problems with overstocking since we keep our stock at optimal levels. Neither did we release any employees since we have invested a lot in them and we do see each one as a family member. We believe in having to face the crisis together. Our only actions were to reduce our order volumes, and close one of our stores. The main problem was collecting payments from the market since bank facilities were not as smooth as before the crisis.

Brands on display at the Office Line wholesale showroom in Kuwait City.

and our customers trust the brands we distribute for the quality and excellent service behind. Visions & Trends: Do you offer your own label products? Is this a trend in Kuwait? Dr.Haitham Durbia OEM trend is growing in Kuwait like it is in Western Europe. We have ridden the wave on some products since the economic crisis concentrating more on manufacturing a range of items that we dont represent in order to complete the range and to compete more effectively. We offer our own label shredders, laminating machines, box files, dividers, indexes, L folders and a few other items.

Paperworld Frankfurt still important

Visions & Trends: Which trade shows do you attend and why? Dr.Haitham Durbia Paperworld Frankfurt and Gitex/Dubai are a must. They are more for meeting most of our suppliers in one place than to look for new partners. The globe has become a small village, so to look for new suppliers today doesnt necessitate travelling thousands of miles. Yet we need to stay in touch with the latest innovations and products in the industry. Visions & Trends: How important do you consider the new trade show Paperworld Dubai to be? Will it be an important show for resellers in Kuwait? Dr.Haitham Durbia We visit Dubai regularly since some of our partners have branches there. Well be visiting Dubai Paperworld, but I think that it needs some time to be compared with Paperworld Frankfurt. Paperworld China has proved that the original is still different in many ways.

Small stationers have the advantage

Visions & Trends: How is the stationery and office products business structured in Kuwait? Dr.Haitham Durbia Kuwait is a tough market and since it is a small country, there is a lot of competition. Office Depot opened their first branch recently and Carrefour entered the market a few years ago, but I dont think they are gaining the market share they anticipated. Smaller stationery companies have more flexibility to move around and meet customers needs for lower prices. Visions & Trends: What are the strengths of Office Line? Dr.Haitham Durbia Our strength is our partners and suppliers continuous trust and support, customer loyalty and a high level of service. We control the service tenders for oil field companies and other big organizations based on 3-5 year contracts with fixed prices. We have created through the years an excellent distribution network that covers all our customers branch needs on a daily basis, from 7am to 4 pm. Visions & Trends: What has been the strategy of Office

A positive outlook
Visions & Trends: What are the future opportunities for Office Line? Dr.Haitham Durbia The Kuwaiti national assembly recently initially approved the US125$bn development plan up to 2013/14. The plan aims for turning Kuwait into a regional trade and financial hub through sustainable economic development, economic diversification and GDP growth. This is shaping an optimistic future, and we want to be a part of it. We are working on expanding the range of products we represent and concentrating on widening our private label products. We are also looking at opening a retail branch in the near future.
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