The store specialised in the retail and maintenance of general office equipment, the business dealt mainly in fax machines, photocopiers and consumables such as cartridges and toners. 

“The business surpassed our expectations on opening,” Phil said. “I had a lot of loyal customers who came with me and continue to support me to this day.”

In the early days, Phil had two technicians, Darryl Bartels and Gary Kershaw, who he praised for their work ethic and skill. 

“Darryl and Gary were excellent technicians and really gave the business a good reputation for installation and servicing,” Phil said. “Darryl was a mechanical and electrical technician and having a mixture of the two is essential, he was an excellent technician.

“The key is to always have good staff in your business, still to this day we have fantastic staff who provide a very high standard of care to our customers.” 

Phil’s previous connections paid off when it came to suppliers they attracted both Canon and Lanier and became the Northern Tasmanian dealer for Lanier photocopiers, dictation and fax machines. 

“I had and still have fantastic relationships with all the suppliers and when I was going out on my own they knew I was going to make a go of it,” Phil said. 

“I was able to increase Lanier sales in just 12 months, but it just goes to show how businesses evolve and change as they are no longer in existence.”

Phil said when the business started it was a bit of an anomaly in the office supplies industry. 

“When we started out in 1997 we were a machines business, most companies these days start with selling stationery and then move into machines we went in the other direction,” Phil said. 

Nine years later Phil Hughes Office Solutions became part of the Office Choice group and then started to provide stationery. The business has been continuously evolving, outlasting the majority of their competitors to become the last of the local stationery and machine suppliers.