Choosing a distributor is one of those decisions you only think about when it goes wrong. A late delivery the week before a site opens, a dead-on-arrival terminal nobody will swap, a price that changes between the quote and the invoice.
If you sell trade EPOS, the distributor behind you shapes how your customers see you. Here’s the checklist we’d use if we were in your shoes, and how B-Spoke Systems measures up against it.
1. Do they actually hold stock in the UK?
Ask where the stock is and how quickly it ships. Some distributors only order from the manufacturer once you’ve placed your order. That’s fine for a project six months out. It’s no good for a pub that needs a replacement till by Friday.
At B-Spoke: we keep the HiStone range in our 8,000 sq ft warehouse in Leicester, and most stock items go out the next working day.
2. Is the range wide enough to cover your customers?
You don’t want to be juggling five suppliers to quote one restaurant. Look for one range that covers the counter, the kitchen, the floor and the window.
At B-Spoke: the HiStone range covers all-in-one EPOS terminals, Android EPOS, mobile tablets, box PCs, scale EPOS, kitchen display systems and self-service kiosks. Add Hisense digital signage and interactive displays and you can quote a full site from one place.
3. Will they prepare the hardware for you?
Unboxing, imaging, setting up and testing forty terminals in your own office eats days. A good EPOS distributor will do it before it ships.
At B-Spoke: we offer gold-disc imaging, software loading, network settings, peripheral testing and serial-number asset tagging. For rollouts we can kit by site and deliver to each location.
4. Do they sell to your customers?
This one is easy to miss. If your distributor also sells direct to end users, you’re competing with your own supplier.
At B-Spoke: we supply the trade only: resellers, software houses and VARs.
5. How easy is it to get a price?
Count how many emails it takes to get a quote. If it’s more than one, that’s time you’re not selling.
At B-Spoke: partners build quotes in our online EPOS configurator. Pick the terminal, spec and peripherals, send it, and we usually come back with a priced quote within one working day.
6. What happens when something breaks?
Ask about warranty terms, who does the repairs and where. Ask how you log a fault and how you get an RMA.
At B-Spoke: our all-in-one terminals carry a 3-year return-to-base warranty with an onsite upgrade available. Repairs are handled by our own team in Leicester, and spare parts are held in the UK. Your engineers log jobs in the Technical Portal and get a reference straight away.
7. Will it work with the software your customers use?
Hardware that hasn’t been tested with your software is a risk you carry, not the distributor.
At B-Spoke: we test our EPOS hardware with the software our customers run, including ICRTouch TouchPoint, and Windows, Linux and Android are available across the range.
8. Can you see the kit before you sell it?
Spec sheets only go so far.
At B-Spoke: you can visit our showroom in Leicester and try the terminals, kiosks and displays in person, with or without your customer.
9. Do they have a quality system?
It sounds dull, but a distributor that works to a documented process makes fewer mistakes.
At B-Spoke: we’ve been ISO 9001 certified for over 20 years.
The short version
A good EPOS distributor holds stock, prepares the hardware, stays out of your customer base, quotes quickly and sorts problems out without a fight. If that sounds like what you need, apply for a trade account or call us on 0116 260 3100.
Want the wider picture first? Read how to become a HiStone EPOS reseller or our guide to EPOS distribution in the UK.