Who We Are
We are an electronics and industrial automation supplier based in Australia. Our mission is to help small businesses around the world grow and stay ahead of the competition by providing them with affordable industrial electronics and automation solutions that allow them to produce high-quality products while meeting their product's rapidly increasing demand.
We envision reaching out to more businesses across all continents and growing our product range so we can continually help our customers with their manufacturing needs.
Currently, we are building a team of staff that can assist our customers around the clock, regardless of where they are or what language they speak.
The Founder's Story
Vince Catalan, our in-house copywriter, interviewed Ian Clayton and Charlisle Harobed, the founders of Industrial Electrical Warehouse. He questioned Ian and Charlisle about the birth of Industrial Electrical Warehouse, the challenges they had overcome while building the store, and the keys to their success as founders and entrepreneurs.
Continue reading to learn how Ian rose from an apprentice electrician to become Australia's most sought-after seller of industrial electrical products.
The Birth of Industrial Electrical Warehouse
We have been actively working in the electrical industry within manufacturing plants, homes and office spaces since the 1990s. As a company ourselves we would buy from wholesalers, look for sales and specials. We have since retired from business operations on the tools and been clearing out our old stock, stock we have from our own business, businesses who have closed, etc. We wanted to offer other businesses no matter how big or small you are the same discounts so that you can win jobs and be successful in the industry.
We also wanted to sell the products that are hard to find and are rare. These products are key to the manufacturers staying operations and there being no product line downtime and keeping the plants revenue coming in.
We want to help small businesses get the small discount rates no matter if you buy 100 or 1 product.
Every company needs to start somewhere and it is always hard to get great discounts from the wholesalers unless you buy large quantities of stock that small businesses normally can’t afford to hold.
Large wholesalers who only give high volume discounts to big businesses. We want everyone to have the same chance.
Small business to get the same chance.
Started as an apprentice for a large manufacturing plant and once I completed my qualifications I wanted to offer my services to the community. I started doing small electrical jobs in people's homes from light switches/socket repairs, stove/hobs and etc building up to working in office buildings, correctional facilities, food manufacturing and so forth so my knowledge has been expansive.
What has been the key to our business success is our exceptional customer service.
We have always communicated with our customers and we are honest. If we promise something we make sure we deliver it and if we can’t we discuss it and find alternative solutions.
Started working in 1974
Full Qualified in 1978 as an Electrician in Australia
Starting working for myself in early 1980s.
Started an eBay store in 2006 and began selling electrical products online - this platform gave me the opportunity to sell products all over the world which I have done so. I was selling consistently until late 2019 and I closed down because of bushfire, floods and then Covid's impact on the world.
Retiring last year and not wanting to lose contact with the industry and knowing that I have a lot of knowledge to share about the electrical industry I started a new online website away eBay so I could offer better selling prices with reduced fees for the customers and I have now incorporated social media to help sell these online.
Hard work and being consistent each day. Listening and learning from our customers so we can better understand their needs, making mistakes and trying things until we get it right.
Over the years like all businesses we would lose clients as people moved on from one company to another. We found to get around these kind of obstacles we needed to keep on talking to new business, working with our old clients and building strong working relationships. It's not all about the money, it's about the working relationship and the respect you have for each other.
Being consistent, following through, and being polite and respectful to the clients as always.
Selling and sourcing more products from business, building my team of staff that can support our clients no matter the language or location in the world and important doing this 24/7.
We really want to grow our product range and source products for our clients.
Success for Ian Clayton and Charlisle Harobed
Over the years, Industrial Electrical Warehouse has conquered numerous challenges. But Ian and Charlisle's perseverance, consistency, ability to listen to and learn from their customers' needs, and courage to address mistakes head-on allowed them to weave their way out of those obstacles.
Success, for Ian and Charlisle, is not all about money. It is more about teamwork and mutual respect. It is about consistently following through and being polite and kind to all the stakeholders.
Above all, it is about staying faithful to the business's raison d'être—to help small business owners grow and keep ahead of the competition by delivering affordable industrial electronics and automation products.
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