Comworth: 30 years and stronger than ever

Surviving 30 years in an industry notorious for its pace of change is no mean feat for any business. Surviving and prospering is something even more significant – but it is an achievement that the Comworth Group can add to a long list of recognitions and accolades that it has racked up over a quarter of a century. The common threads through its many years in business are a commitment to local service and support, a focus on world-class technology, and attracting and retaining the best people for the job.

Founded as family business back in 1983 in a one-window office in Auckland’s Mairangi Bay, David and Bronwen Charlesworth secured the rights to a burgeoning telecommunications product line in the Pacific market – OKI.  Back then, OKI’s primary product was the fax machine and mobile phones, devices that would go on to revolutionise the telecommunications industry.

Today, the Comworth Group continues to evolve. It has grown to comprise three companies, each providing technology solutions to customers across New Zealand and around the globe.

Those businesses are:

• Comworth Technology Group; a technology distributor representing OKI, Panasonic Toughbook, LG displays and Zebra ID printers.
• Agile Group; a telecommunications integrator in NZ and Australia specialising in Unified Communications, Contact Centre and Networks.
• Virsae Group; a global telecommunications company developing cloud-based software applications for Unified Communications and Contact Centres.

Headquartered on Auckland’s North Shore, Comworth has offices in three locations across New Zealand and an office in Sydney. It employs over 100 people, 20% of whom have been with the business for over 20 years.

Having survived through a number of global financial crises and succeeding despite the dramatically shifting sands of the technology industry – in which the fax market has virtually disappeared and the price of printers has fallen from $1,000 to $100 – David Charlesworth is philosophical about the company’s success. “Change is a constant in most businesses, but the pace for the technology industry makes it an exciting environment,” he says. “Staying on top of that, along with the vagaries of financial market performances, is something that can only be achieved with the vision, support and contribution of capable people. Celebrating 30 years, therefore, is a credit to all who work with the Comworth Group and who have worked with us in the past.”

Awards that the company has won over the years include recognition from Microsoft in the form of several Solutions Awards, Reseller of the Year awards from OKI and Zebra, and the inclusion of founder David Charlesworth as a member of the Enterprise North Shore Business Hall of Fame. Charlesworth was also named an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year, winning in the Technology, Communication and Biotechnology category in 2004.

As an avid sailor and prominent member of the local sailing scene, Charlesworth and Comworth have long supported the sport, starting with Peter Blake and Steinlager 2’s Round the World campaign, to the OKI 24 Hour Race, heralded as the world’s toughest dinghy race, and the World Match Racing Series with the RNZYS.

Looking to the future, Charlesworth notes that technology keeps evolving and so does the Comworth Group; exciting developments include the introduction of 3D printers, the rising demand for ruggedised tablet technology and the global possibilities opening up for cloud-based software applications developed by Agile and Virsae.

“We’re especially pleased with the fact that we have been able to maintain many of our supplier relationships from the very beginning,” says Charlesworth. “Comworth Technology is still the NZ OKI distributor after all these years and has moved from fax machines through to mobile phones and into printers. It just proves the fact that business is person-to-person and if you can build a great team and keep the personal relationships strong, you will prosper.”