Our ‘Wholesaler of the Month’ for March 2024 is… Maurice Rogers of Acorn Electrical Wholesale in Bognor Regis.
With over 30 years serving electricians in Bognor Regis and the South, Acorn Electrical Wholesale has a loyal base of local customers, many of whom have been visiting Acorn for as long as it has been open.
We caught up with its Director, Maurice Rogers, about how Acorn had managed to cultivate this loyalty, and ask how they had weathered 3 decades of challenges and change… all while being an independent wholesaler with just two members of staff.
Name: Maurice Rogers
Position: Director
Wholesaler: Acorn Electrical Wholesale (Bognor Regis)
Maurice, could you tell me more about your role at Acorn?
I’m the Director at Acorn, but as we are only a very small team (two people) I’m involved with just about everything. From helping customers on the trade counter to managing purchasing, invoicing and ledgers… we mix in and do what’s needed.
How did you get into wholesaling – and how did you arrive at Acorn?
I have been wholesaling since the 1980s and joined Acorn in 1996, but that isn’t all I have done. I started off in a radio and TV shop in 1972. I then moved onto van driving, followed by coach driving.
It was my wife, who worked for a heating and plumbing company, who was in contact with the representative at Acorn, and that led to me joining the company all those years ago. I have been here ever since.
Do you have a favourite thing about the job?
A successful order is the most satisfying thing. When a customer asks for a product, and we can stock it, it’s proof that we have prepared correctly and can supply what they need.
That being said, the other thing is that a lot of those customers – mainly domestic installers – have been with Acorn since I joined, and they have become much more like friends than clients.
As quite a small wholesaler, that loyalty must be very valuable?
It certainly is, and it’s a major plus in a competitive market with the internet and larger wholesalers to compete with.
We thrive on word-of-mouth recommendations: our customers like the service and they know they can always come back for a product or advice without hassle.
We are a local wholesaler, but people will come from quite a wide radius to visit us because of that.
You have been in wholesaling for nearly 3 decades now – what have been the biggest changes in your view?
Without a doubt, lighting. The move to LED from fluorescent fittings, and equally the move to downlights was rapid and quite dramatic.
I say this because there are some things that have barely changed at all in that time – wall switches and sockets are a good example, although decorative plates are becoming much more common, admittedly.
How has LED dimming evolved in that time, as well?
Dimming LED has always been quite tricky and that hasn’t changed – but that is why having a product like the ZMO150 as an essential ‘ready-for-anything’ dimmer module is so helpful.
As most of our customers are domestic, if they ask for a dimmer, that’s what we provide them - and they can rely on it to work.
Last of all, can you think of a particular situation where the ZMO150 has come in particularly useful?
Aside from those occasions, another thing we can rely on it to do is save the day if a plate and module combo from another supplier has a module that doesn’t work.
Some electricians will purchase these products but will come to us if they struggle to dim LED. That usually happens because those modules are designed to dim incandescent bulbs as well as LED, when a module designed exclusively for LED is better.
If we offer the ZMO150 module to replace it, we know that it will solve their problem.
We would like to thank Maurice for his time and congratulate Acorn Electrical for being our Wholesaler of the Month.
Want to feature in our next Wholesaler Spotlight? Be sure to give our team a call on 0345 519 5858 or drop us a message on socials. And, for any order enquiries, either drop us a call or send an email to sales@zanocontrols.co.uk