Just six years ago, Digi-Key introduced its first catalogue for the UK, with a total of 801 pages. Today, its print catalogue totals 2,376 pages, backed by a strong internet purchasing facility
From a single page in 1972 to 801 pages in 2003 to 2,376 pages in 2009, the Digi-Key catalogue represents the companys longevity, growth and progress. For purchasing agents and electronics design engineers, the catalogues represent even more. Digi-Key is committed to stock all of the products featured in its print catalogues, which translates into more than 400,000 components and accessories from over 400 manufacturers, in stock and available for off-the-shelf, same-day shipment.
Digi-Keys president and COO, Mark Larson, said: Long deemed an invaluable reference book for design engineers and purchasing agents, the Digi-Key catalogue exemplifies our commitment to customers.
This commitment was in evidence from the outset, when Digi-Key was started by an engineer who knew first hand what was required of an electronic components distributor – a customer-centric business that provides a broad selection of quality components available in both prototype and production quantities.
Thirty-seven years later, more than 1,900 Digi-Key employees serve hundreds of thousands of purchasing professionals and design engineers from around the world, utilising resources at its 600,000ft facility. There, Digi-Key employees aim to provide customers with the best possible service, concentrating on the key areas of product selection, availability, on-time delivery and responsiveness.
This years catalogue features an increase of 328 pages from Digi-Keys 2008 book, representing tens of thousands of new products from numerous existing, and 30 new, supplier partners. With more than 17,000 products from Tyco Electronics in stock, the expansion of Digi-Keys North American franchise agreement with Tyco Electronics to global authorisation in November also attributed significantly to both pages and products in the 2009 catalogue for the United Kingdom.
In addition to producing its most current catalogue, Digi-Key has made several changes, which facilitate ease of doing business for its UK customers. Sales, customer service and technical support representatives are staffed around the clock, 365 days a year. Additionally, shipping is free for all orders of 50 and more with no additional shipping charges for one backorder shipment. Should circumstances warrant deviations from these charges, customers are contacted for approval prior to shipment of their order. On orders of less than 50.00, a 12.00 shipping charge is billed.
To complement its print catalogue Digi-Key maintains a uk.digikey.com website, with more than 60 per cent of orders now received via the Internet.
Larson concludes: From the customer feedback weve received, we believe our print catalogues complement our websites. Some customers use the catalogue and then place their orders on the website. Others research products on the website and then phone in their orders and to that end, we continue to believe that our print catalogue provides value to many of our customers.