2025 REVIEW
CONTINUED
us to help them achieve these dual goals. One enduring challenge is the need to stand out in a crowded market. The way customers consume goods and services today is different from even five or 10 years ago. This demands that our channel partners remain highly relevant and distinct. At Fujifilm, we address this by leveraging our strength as an established brand with a long heritage, which is now vigorously expanding into the UK market. This provides our partners with market- leading reliability alongside new, exciting products to discuss with their customers. AI will continue to have an impact on the sector. Not only from the consumption
tracking and workflow automation. Those embracing digital transformation have fared best. Elsewhere, security has become a baseline requirement, embedded in every technology decision. AI is having a transformative impact, becoming an affective productivity tool. From intelligent document classification to predictive maintenance and workflow optimisation, AI is amplifying human expertise – allowing teams to focus on higher-value, strategic work. AI has moved beyond experimentation to deliver tangible value through automated workflows, data-driven decision-making via platforms like Ricoh Smart Integration, and smart document processing. Our DocuWare solution leverages leading AI technology, enhanced by our acquisition of Natif.ai. ESG credentials have emerged as genuine business drivers, with sustainability becoming a competitive differentiator as companies prioritise energy efficiency and circular economy principles, as evidenced by the popularity of Ricoh’s CE range of printers, manufactured using recycled and reused components to reduce environmental impact. In terms of challenges, cybersecurity threats remain critical as connected of print but also how manufacturers and partners utilise AI to run their businesses in a more agile manner that will allow them to be more competitive. There will be greater demands for seamless integration into business systems to accelerate efficiency. We are seeing a gap emerge between what companies do at either end of the spectrum. We see interesting developments where organisations have been talking about moving more towards print in a time when data security is such a concern. At Fujifilm, we have tech we are preparing to launch in 2026, which we believe will be groundbreaking, so keep your eyes peeled. n
Rowan Jeffreys-Hoar , director of partner channel, Ricoh UK While 2025 had its difficulties as wider economic challenges put pressure on business budgets, the year has been transformative for Ricoh and our partners. Together, we've helped organisations advance their digital maturity, particularly in secure, sustainable information
management. Our cloud-first, AI-enabled solutions continue to address growing customer demands for automation and sustainability. There is much to be proud of but if I had to highlight one project, it’s our partnership with Agilico to extend the lifecycle of our technology and support Agilico’s net zero targets. This is one of many fantastic partnerships where we innovate and drive growth together. I look forward to bringing Unity, our new partner programme, to the UK in April 2026. The initiative is designed to redefine collaboration, enhance experience and accelerate growth for our partners. Looking at the print sector, traditional print volumes have stabilised, and we've seen significant growth in subscription models and digital integration. Providers have shifted from hardware-based offerings to comprehensive solutions including analytics, sustainability
Rowan Jeffreys-Hoar director of indirect sales
ricoh.co.uk
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