News

Advance Wins Two National Dealer Awards and is Appointed to Advisory Council

Advance announces it is the recipient of two National Dealer Awards of Excellence and an advisory council appointment from Ricoh, a global technology company specializing in office imaging equipment, production print solutions, document management systems, and IT services.

The Ricoh Family Group Dealer awards were presented at Ricoh Americas Corporation’s national dealer show, held in Las Vegas, NV, on October 30, 2013. Advance has a long history with Ricoh, as it first took on the products of Savin/Ricoh in 1997, anticipating the revolutionizing explosion of digital office technology.

Advance won Ricoh’s most prestigious award, the Renaissance Award, in which Ricoh’s top leaders select a single recipient from its national Ricoh Family Group of over 400 dealers for exceptional commitment to strategic innovation, customer satisfaction, and their strong partnership with Ricoh Americas.

“We work tirelessly to provide our customers with the most innovative solutions to solve their everyday business challenges, backed by the best service available anywhere in the country. Winning this award is validation that the investments we are making in our employees and customers are separating Advance from our field of competitors,” says Jeff Elkin, president of Advance.

Advance also won the B2C Unit Sales award, recognizing the top Savin brand dealer from more than 150 dealers, for the highest number of color multi-functional products purchased nationally. -more- In addition, Ricoh appointed Jeff Elkin to its National Dealer Council. The NDC is comprised of 12 dealers nationally that serve in an advisory capacity working with Ricoh executive management over a two to three year term, while representing over 400 dealers nationally. Dealers serving the NDC are carefully selected on the basis of their innovation and ability to deliver superior value to their customers.

Advance was also recognized as 1st and 2nd runner up in the following categories:

Overall Revenue Achievement – 1st runner up, recognizing the top Savin brand dealer for highest overall purchases of Savin products.

Commercial Business Growth – 2nd runner up, recognizing the top Savin brand dealer for highest growth in purchases, year over year, in developing commercial business. It also won a President’s Award, which it has received in previous years, which recognizes dealers that carry an annual quota in excess of $5 million in purchases and overachieving quota by the highest percentage.

About Advance

As a total document solutions provider, Advance helps organizations tackle business problems by pairing best in class technology with industry leading support. Whether it’s proactively managing a customer’s IT infrastructure, providing multifunctional devices or an electronic document management software solution, Advance provides solutions for productivity so organizations can focus on their core business. Celebrating its 50th year serving Maryland businesses, Advance has deep roots throughout the state. As an independent, family owned business, Advance is proud to partner with organizations such as the Baltimore Ravens, Maryland Zoo, Maryland Athletics, and the National Aquarium for office efficiencies and to demonstrate its commitment to the local community. Advance has 165 employees and was recently named a finalist in the Baltimore Business Journal’s annual Best Places to Work awards.

About Ricoh

Ricoh is a global technology company specializing in office imaging equipment, production print solutions, document management systems and IT services. Headquartered in Tokyo, Ricoh Group operates in about 200 countries and regions. In the financial year ending March 2013, Ricoh Group had worldwide sales of 1,924 billion yen (approx. 20 billion USD). The majority of the company’s revenue comes from products, solutions and services that improve the interaction between people and information. Ricoh also produces award-winning digital cameras and specialized industrial products. It is known for the quality of its technology, the exceptional standard of its customer service and sustainability initiatives. Under its corporate tagline, imagine. change., Ricoh helps companies transform the way they work and harness the collective imagination of their employees.