It’s been the better part of 175 years since gold fever infected prospectors trekking West in search of their fortunes. Miners harvested more than 250,000 pounds of gold during the California Gold Rush of the mid-19th century. Just north of the Golden State, a different flavor of prospecting is continuing to produce untold riches for the initiated, and it doesn’t involve dynamite or digging tools.
It’s clear that Sean Bell knows where to dig. The president and principal of Solutions YES in Portland, Oregon, has enjoyed steady growth for his dealership by virtue of capturing net-new business. Through October 2024, the Kyocera, Canon and Xerox dealer reaped nearly 30% of sales revenue from net-new logos. Solutions YES is also dominating in the “finders-keepers” realm with an impressive 98%-plus retention rate.
The approach Solutions YES embraced has proven to be a winning formula. The dealer added a number of new account representatives who (initially, at least) are assigned current accounts previously held by incumbent reps. This provides a base for the newcomers as opposed to starting from scratch, and they’ve succeeded in generating net-new as well. Meanwhile, the more experienced reps then have more time to focus on prospecting, particularly with bigger accounts.
“There’s a group of us who have been around long enough and have a book of business that’s consistent and safe. We’re almost to the point of being really comfortable,” Bell offered. “We’ve tried to challenge that group of reps to focus on growth, which means they have to drop some of the accounts that are smaller and not as profitable. That gives them more time for prospecting.
“Our executive team is more focused on identifying larger net-new opportunities, setting C-level appointments with them and bringing along sales reps,” he added. “After the introductory meeting with the prospect, the executive team is no longer really involved in capturing that account. We’re just there to open doors.”
Although the dealer has some major competition in the region, namely Pacific Office Automation (POA) and two manufacturer direct operations, Bell believes that a significant amount of the market is underserved. That’s where Solutions YES’ customer service component truly shines, and that’s key to the high retention rate. Satisfied customers—much like their frustrated counterparts—aren’t shy in sharing their experiences with other businesses, and that’s ushered in a wave of net-new opportunities.
The three aforementioned competitors represent roughly 75% market share in Oregon, which Solutions YES hopes to erode. It’s 100% strategic, and as Bell noted, “We fish where the fish are.”
Career Reboot
Bell and four partners hung Solutions YES’ shingle in 2011, bereft of customers and boasting limited financial resources. The now-55-year-old exec entered the venture with a bevy of experience, including having been a minority owner in Associated Business Systems, a 1997 startup that grew to $43 million in annual revenues with 10 locations and roughly 200 employees. However, the majority owner chose to retire 11 years in and sell the company. At that juncture, Bell didn’t have the wherewithal to wrest control. He found himself in his late 30s with a nice payout from the sale and a desire to pivot.
He became a part of the five-member partnership that launched Solutions YES (two partners recently cashed out and retired), and the dealership has grown steadily to just south of $15 million in annual revenue. Prior to the pandemic, the company enjoyed double-digit yearly growth, and between 2020 and 2022, ownership focused on becoming debt-free.
The prior experiences helped position Bell and Co. to truly thrive. “We’re in the people business—you need to have great people and give them the resources they need,” he said. “When you take care of your people, they in turn take care of your customers. We strive to be the very best vendors our customers have. If we live up to that expectation, we don’t really need to worry about POA.”
Currently, Solutions YES serves many clients that have national holdings and are headquartered in Oregon and southwest Washington; it supports equipment in about 25 states. While the dealer addresses a variety of verticals, many are in essential industries including medical, financial, construction, education and local government. In addition to copiers, printers, faxes and wide-format devices, Solutions YES offers managed print, document management tools, facilities management and supplies. The company partners with specialists for managed network services.
Previously a Kyocera and Xerox house, the company added Canon in 2022 to help fill in particular output categories. Canon also opened the door to the wide-format realm, and Bell anticipates moving toward the bigger production units. He’s excited about the possibilities offered by the new line.
“Adding Canon has allowed us to compete for business we weren’t able to previously,” he said. “We added Canon so we could offer a broader range of solutions to our customers, and so we would be better positioned with the strongest brands as manufacturers likely consolidate.”
Buying out the retiring partners helped ownership become more unified in their desired path for driving growth. Bell is also content to remain an independent dealer, with no desire to sell. Maintaining that status is critical to not wavering on the commitment to exceptional customer service. Hiring younger, intelligent prospects also enables the dealer to become a generational organization.
Solutions Positioning
Speaking of transitions, Solutions YES is encouraging its sales department to leverage the solutions-oriented offerings in its menu, namely DocuWare, PaperCut and uniFLOW. While Bell expects the imaging piece to be central to its business for the next 10 years, he sees an opportunity to grow solutions, as they only represent about 5% of the revenue pie—a figure he expects to increase as millennials and Gen Z decision makers become more prevalent.
“These younger people didn’t grow up printing documents, and as they become decision-makers, they won’t feel they need as many printers,” Bell said. “I do see the industry changing drastically for the next generation. People who are only 10 years younger than me think differently than I do. This is something we need to consider on the client side as well as with our leadership as younger people take the reins.”
For the time being, Solutions YES isn’t moving into ancillary offerings. While Bell has considered various opportunities, he notes that the dealership boasts just 5% market share, which has driven the continuous reinvestment in imaging equipment. Since future growth opportunities abound in the market, coupled with the fact that the dealer isn’t being pressed by the competition, Bell sees no reason to divert efforts toward other lines of business that have lower margin rates than imaging.
Count Bell in the “never say never” crowd, but he likes being deliberate in crafting strategy. He’s heard his share of cautionary tales, courtesy of his membership in peer groups, particularly when it comes to managed IT. Larger dealers have reaped profits from the venture, but the small- to medium-sized dealers can struggle with the long runway until profitability. Even the more successful dealers noted it took five years or more to realize an ROI.
“In five years, I could double the size of my company through imaging,” Bell noted. “I don’t want to abandon a successful model for the sake of doing something new.”
Bell is intrigued by the opportunities presented by artificial intelligence (AI). He notes that AI powers DocuWare’s intelligent indexing, allowing users to more efficiently complete tasks. Solutions YES also represents FormedAI, which offers customized workflow solutions, and expects to see more iterations of AI popping up in the not-too-distant future.
Customer Care
Maintaining double-digit revenue growth, in Bell’s estimation, will require onboarding more senior sales reps. Solutions YES has grown its sales department 50% in the last 15 months alone, and only two reps boast less than 20 years of industry experience. Here, too, it’s a product of capitalizing on competitors’ lackluster efforts.
“Our competition hasn’t taken excellent care of their customers, which opened doors for us to hire their sales reps,” Bell remarked. “Once on our team, instead of spending a considerable amount of time resolving billing/service issues, those sales reps can focus on net-new, as their current customers are exceptionally well taken care of by the rest of our teammates.”
One possible change on the horizon that could help spark greater growth is acquiring companies that are a strategic fit for Solutions YES. Shrinking the ownership cast to three may pave the way for a foray into the M&A world, as having five decision-makers made it difficult to reach consensus on pursuing that avenue. And while the trio might come to an agreement more quickly and greenlight additions that fit, the pickings are somewhat slim.
“It’s kind of a scorched earth in Oregon. Kelley [Create] has bought a lot of the small dealers and POA has put the other ones out of business,” Bell noted. “There might be two independent dealers [in the $5 million range] left in all of Oregon.”
A relative youngster among the top executive ranks, Bell doesn’t have retirement on the radar. He still enjoys crafting custom-fit solutions for clients—enabling them to focus on their core mission—validating their decision to partner with Solutions YES. The base of operations is also content; turnover is low and the dealer has been named by Oregon Business magazine as one of the “100 Best Companies to Work for in Oregon” seven times during its 13-year existence.
Velvet Rope
Solutions YES is also deliberate in its hiring process, which is why it’s populated by “only A-level players in our business,” Bell observed. The culture is self-policing and wouldn’t hesitate to root out malcontents. The president proudly notes the company sits at 150% of the industry benchmark for productivity per employee. Management may set the vision, according to Bell, but employees guide the process toward achieving it. Team members value that level of empowerment.
“We give them whatever they need to succeed, whether it’s more training, additional monitors or additions to the team to have the bandwidth necessary to win,” he said. “Another key is that a lot of companies in our business are sales-centric, where the salespeople basically run the show. We’re not that way; every employee in our company is equal. We treat each other that way, and we don’t allow for any drama. That creates a safe, relaxing and fun atmosphere.”
Bell was finalizing Solutions YES’ 2025 business plan at the time of this interview. The blueprint calls for continued double-digit growth on the order of the 15% that was expected for 2024 once totals become official. Hitting that mark will require additional salespeople and more revenue from the incumbent team. Bell believes each of the account representatives have the potential to post more than $1 million per year in sales, which he hopes to make a reality through collaborating and sharing best practices.
“We’ll also be looking to capitalize more on solutions, production and wide-format opportunities,” Bell concluded. “As we grow, we’ll continue to add more commercial accounts versus government so we’re more profitable and can then give back more to the teammates who’ve contributed to our success. We’re extremely optimistic about what the new year will hold for us.”
