With 45 years of IT channel experience, TDL Gentek is a technology, telecommunications, and consumer goods specialist serving more than 250 brands in Canada in the broadband, security, unified communications, networking, ProAV, and consumer goods sectors. Renowned for its proficiency and value-added services, TDL Gentek is dedicated to assisting its partners in finding the best solutions for their clients regardless of business type including ISP, WISP, MSP, SP, VAR, and consumer goods retailers.
Traditionally serving the WISP and ISP communities in Canada with numerous installation clients, TDL Canada acquired Gentek—a leading distributor of unified communications and connectivity products—two years ago, and even more recently acquired Microcel, a value-added distributor of consumer goods products.
“During COVID, we all raced to get more connected and flexible on work areas and work-from-home scenarios, and with that both businesses—TDL and Gentek—were in a position to provide customers with the solutions they needed,” says Tina Furlan, Vice President of Marketing. “When TDL Canada acquired Gentek, the customer base and product categories were very complementary.”
Now well into the merger of the two companies, both are finding that the two work “really well” in the Canadian market and the different product categories carried, she adds. This includes broadband, networking, security—which is a growth focus—cybersecurity solutions, and consumer goods, a wide array of products overall for TDL Canada.
With about 75 employees providing service across Canada, TDL Gentek is one of the only distributors in the country that “is Canadian-owned,” says Furlan. “We only service Canadians and all of our products are housed in Canada. Everything ships from a Canadian distributor. Often you have cross-border imports of various products, but we really try to focus on making sure everything is in Canada and available and all the import is taken care of.”
In addition to the company’s already expansive product offering, it is also delving into an evolving expansion in the security scene. “Security is important in the market,” says Furlan. “With changes in regulations, there’s a big opportunity for us to really dive into the security sector.”
With respect to that category, TDL Gentek offers a wide variety of reliable products and several very popular brands, including Uniview and Ubiquiti that provide products such as IP cameras, NVRs, and access control solutions. “Our team is able to help customers integrate and map out the ideal security solution and give our customers robust, reliable security solutions,” she adds.
When looking at the security landscape in Canada, and into the U.S. as well, a lot of MSPs actually have an entire securities division, which is something the company focuses on. And when looking at TDL Gentek, each of its categories and brands offers training and certification, so the company can help its partners with that element. “We think it’s very important for everybody to be well trained and understand the product for their customers and have the opportunity to train their end users.” Furlan says.
To that end, TDL Gentek has several certification programs from Uniview, Ubiquiti, Grandstream, and many others as well. “Certainly, from that value-add perspective, we work to make sure that our customers are going to succeed,” she says.
This value-added approach is very comprehensive, she adds. Within every category, including security, TDL Gentek ensures customers have everything they need, from cabling to point-to-point antennas to the cameras to monitor an entire facility. Not only that, but they can also do it through LTE (Long-Term Evolution, a fourth-generation [4G] wireless standard) because they carry an LTE line of products which will service very remote business locations.
“If there’s a mine in the north that needs connectivity, we can accommodate that. We can get them LTE devices that allow the facility to have fully functioning security, unified communications, and networking capabilities.” says Furlan. “And we have the experts in-house to help spec those solutions out.”
Providing and maintaining customer service is high priority for the company, she adds. “I think that’s what makes us truly value-added, because we can help our customers put together the solutions, map out and plan what they’re going to need for their networks and for specific deployments,” she says. “It’s very hands-on, one-on-one, and ‘white glove service.’ We support our customers with a number of services and do more than just ship out products. It’s important to our business.”
Whether it’s site assessments, installation, support, or ongoing technical assistance, all of that and more applies across the board, as well as the company’s security category of products. Additionally, to combat the automation and AI generation of customer service, TDL Gentek strives to maintain a personal, human connection with clients and companies.
“We have people who answer the phone,” Furlan says. “It’s something we pride ourselves on, because it’s not always the way anymore. Some companies do that, and some companies don’t. But this is what we think is important.”
Along with that dedication to personalized and expert customer care, TDL Gentek’s commitment to remaining a Canadian brand is another reason it stands out in the industry. “When working with a Canadian company, you’ll get a great deal of local expertise,” Furlan says. “TDL Gentek has more than 45 years of experience of distributing product in Canada with a deep understanding of how to get product in easily, how to manage the tax implications, the imports. But not only that—when you talk about local expertise, TDL Gentek understands the regulations around every aspect of our business. It’s really another value-add for our customers.”
This means faster delivery times as the company stocks products in Canada with warehouses located across the country. In short, buying local is faster than going international. “It helps with operational efficiency for all of our customers.”
Challenges the company has faced recently have been both operational and marketing-related but are likely not much different than what many other businesses in this current economy have to deal with. “Operationally, scaling our operations, ensuring product availability, and bringing in new brands, all while improving our systems has been challenging,” Furlan says. “It’s a delicate balance and we’ve seen success.”
Of course, there have also been numerous accomplishments for the company, such as maintaining revenue growth over the last couple of years in the face of other challenges and forging strong partnerships.
“In terms of strategic partnerships, we have some great brands that we work with, like Teltonika, Ubiquiti, and Uniview, and it’s important to all of our vendors that new products go to market smoothly,” says Furlan. “It’s about staying on top of trends and making sure we’re bringing in the right products and the right partnerships,” she shares.
Plans for the upcoming years include a focus on product expansion and operational excellence while remaining true to the Canadian channel. “It’s very important for our customers that we remain true to the channel while we grow our market share,” Furlan says. “We don’t go direct to end user; we work through the channel.”
When it comes to innovative products, the company will continually strive to stay at the forefront, and clients will see TDL Gentek’s services continue to evolve and expand. The team is always on the lookout for places where it can add value. “We want to make sure we maintain and expand appropriately, to make sure that we’re servicing our customers properly,” says Furlan.
While TDL Gentek continues to focus on the diversity of its product portfolio, its strong Canadian presence, and its value-added services, its customer-centric approach is also one of the many attributes that truly sets it apart from other industry leaders, and one it takes immense pride in.
This means supporting customers after the sale is complete as well, adds Furlan. “It’s not just about that sale; the relationship continues on. And because we carry some very prominent brands and because we’re in distribution, we can help our customers take advantage of vendor-supported programs.” This includes initiatives for upgrading networks, volume, and pricing—all of the standard services found at that distribution level.
Ultimately, “We want all of our customers be very successful,” Furlan says. “We want them to understand the product and trust us to be their distributor.”
