Here I am at Lac a L’eau Claire, in Quebec, Canada, attending the annual ICP Solar Sales and Marketing sessions. At these pow-wows, our teams from all regions and company areas get together once a year to discuss the changes for the next year. This year something amazing has occurred…we have all 3 areas of our company (Solar Consumer Products, Solar Cells and Solar Construction Materials) slated to grow at the same time and the energy is simply so energizing, that I can’t wait to get out with our sales teams to spread the news of what’s coming to the market soon.
New products, new branding, new channels, new logistics, new production capacity, new ERP system… all coming online within months. A mammoth task that I know my team is up to. Its so energizing listening to this tremendously qualified team. During one of the breaks, we got word that our biggest potential customer was just confirmed. Its immediate needs and pipeline potential has 10 times the forecast of our largest previous client. Our issue will be supply to a market already starving.
Remember the Santa at Macy’s who referred the kids and their moms to other stores? Macy’s sales skyrocketed as it began to sell things through the increased visits simply because it became a one-stop-shop for information, not simply product. Guess what happened? People walking in and out almost always bought something else they did not come for. So ICP will be the same.
We’ll share our plans with the market in the coming months and be honest with those that we can’t partner with, and those that we can, simply due to capacity. Those that cannot be supplied will be referred to other ethical vendors. And because competition at the low end has been hobbled by recent independant tests and increased rigor in rating reporting, the situation will only serve to aggravate the demand for honestly-rated cells and products. Retailers who previously did not think twice about selling fake-rated items, will now be forced to do so. Manufacturers who now make fake-rated items will lose markets everywhere. The pressure for new production capacity will rise once again.
Such excitement..I think I’ll go jump in the lake right next to the hotel to cool off! Oh, before I forget, check out this link created by Gregg Cohen, latest addition to the ICP team. This file perfectly reflects the spirit this week: Download file
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