Electrical Contracting News (ECN) May 2016 | Page 32

WHOLESALER Q&A

RIFINA

WHOLESALER SPOTLIGHT: RIFINA
The electrical wholesale market has long been dominated by four or five major distributors
but there are plenty of smaller operators with the knowledge and expertise that ensures
their customers keep coming back time and again. ECN is looking to showcase some of the
smaller-scale wholesalers that are big on customer service – starting with family owned Rifina.
Tell us about Rifina
Rifina is a family owned electrical
wholesaler started in June 1977 by Frank
Bartlam and his wife Dorothy. The current
MD, Richard, is Frank’s son. Frank
Bartlam was on the board of the EWF, the
forerunner of the EDA, for many years, and
president in 1983.
Could you describe how
the company has grown?
The company started business in June 1977
in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. It still has a
branch in the same premises today. Several
years ago, the head office moved to a larger
site in Tewkesbury, close to the M5. A third
branch in Cirencester, Gloucestershire,
was opened later, extending the company’s
coverage across the Cotswolds.
The company has always sought to
grow and at a pace that is consistent with
maintaining good service to existing as well
as new customers. Our conservative, stepby-step approach to growth has ensured
stability for the business through good
times and bad over the past 40 years.
Do you have ambitions to expand
outside Gloucestershire?
Rifina’s three premises are well placed
to serve Worcestershire, Avon, Wiltshire
and West Oxfordshire, and the company
already has a significant presence in
each of these counties. Expansion will
be carefully managed – and properly
resourced – to ensure new customers are
served just as well as customers who have
been with the company for over 30 years.
Rifina is a member of the Anew
distributors buying group. When
did you join the group, and why?
Rifina was a member of the earlier EMMA
buying consortium for many years. After
CREW and NEDA amalgamated to create
ANEW in 1993, all the EMMA members
joined in 2001. ANEW members
represent more than 20 per cent of the
market in the UK.
What marks the company out
among its competitors?
Rifina’s ethos is based on customer service.
For example, calling a single number
puts the customer in contact with the first
available salesperson through a hunt system,
minimising the customer’s waiting time.

The company’s investment in delivery
vehicles ensures same day delivery for
stock items where the order is placed
before 9am. Customers’ urgent needs
can be catered for without disrupting
scheduled deliveries.
Rifina has long prided itself on the
expertise of its staff – not just their
technical product knowledge but also their
ability to source hard-to-find or obscure
products on the customer’s behalf. This
helps hard pressed customers seeking to
keep plant running with the minimum of
downtime, and also customers working to
short deadlines.
Rifina works with many manufacturers
– we are not tied to a single brand for any
particular product. Our sales philosophy is
to consistently offer the customer brands
that are the best for their needs, rather
than brands promoted simply because the
wholesaler may have excess stock at a
particular time.
How many staff do you have?
Twenty-six, from first year apprentices to
people who have worked for the company
for 40 years.
Describe the company’s
commitment to staff training
First class support for customers can
only come from staff who have the skills
and knowledge to offer not only the
right products, but the best solutions for
customer needs. That’s why Rifina has
consistently invested in staff training from
full-blown apprenticeships to EDA driven
MOL courses based around a series of
technical modules. Our staff development
programme is further enhanced by local
peer-to-peer in-house training together
with training from manufacturers to fill any
knowledge gaps that may arise.
How have these efforts helped
the business succeed?
Properly trained staff are invariably
better able to meet customers’ needs.
Consistently meeting customer needs
tends to foster a strong working
relationship based on trust and confidence
between customers and staff. In turn, the
positive comments of customers have
a helpful impact on the self-worth and
confidence of staff members, and growth
in business.

Rifina’s operations director Bill Ennis collects an award for
investment in training at the EDA annual dinner earlier this year.

What does Rifina have
planned for the future?
Rifina believes that the key to success
is customer service. The company is
already present in most key markets
across the Cotswolds, and its expansion
stems primarily from steady geographical
expansion controlled in a way that
ensures customer service will never be
compromised. Rifina invests continually in

staff development and training as well as
its infrastructure. New staff are recruited
as and when the need arises in line with
the company’s commitment to service.
Rifina clearly sees the evolution of
customers’ buying habits towards greater
use of the web. Rifina’s e-trading website
was launched a few years ago and is
being developed to take account of
changing customer needs.

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