Technology sales to small and medium businesses (SMBs) in Wellington have taken off, says Enprise Solutions Mark Loveys.
“It was only May last year when Wellington’s economy looked so bleak that even our prime minister John Key referred to it as a 'dying city' and 'all you have there is government, Victoria University and Weta Workshop',” says Loveys
“Now, Wellington is our fastest growing region in New Zealand.”
Enprise sells MYOB EXO systems. In the last quarter of 2013, sales were more than three times what they were in the corresponding quarter the previous year. Loveys says December and January were record months for MYOB EXO ERP software sales, with February shaping up to look even better.
“Last year Wellington was so quiet that we were sending staff to Auckland to help out. That situation has reversed.”
He says MYOB EXO is a very good indicator of the broader market because the product is used in multiple sectors.
“Wellington’s small to medium business owners have switched on to investing for growth and I would say that they are more optimistic about the general business climate than we’ve ever seen before.
“Things had got to a very low point last year. We’re now seeing a strong comeback in the economy and a real surge in confidence.”
Loveys thinks that because several head offices are heading north to Auckland, it may be creating opportunities for SMBs.
“Enprise’s other New Zealand branches, in Auckland and Hamilton, are also experiencing an upsurge in demand now that confidence is returning to the New Zealand business climate,” he says.
“Businesses owners are realising that they need to invest in putting strong operational and financial systems in place to compete and capitalise on the opportunities of a more buoyant market.
“There is also a strong shift towards Cloud computing. Nearly half of all the MYOB EXO systems we sell are hosted in the Cloud by our associate company 2Cloud.biz.
In Australia, Enprise has offices in Sydney and Melbourne which also focus on selling MYOB EXO software to the larger local SMBs. Loveys says Australian business confidence took a hit last year before the election and Enprise noticed a drop-off in business software investment.
“But following the election, we are seeing a recovery in business sentiment and we’re now very optimistic about Australian sales in 2014.”