Looking for a new direction

North Shore based theatre and display lighting manufacturer, Selecon, was founded in 1969 when Walter Coleman needed a theatre light for the education market and couldn't find one that delivered the right performance at the right price. So he developed a six inch Fresnel lens that worked with a P28 sealed halogen lamp and launched Selecon into the New Zealand market.

In 1985, fellow employees Jeremy Collins and Andrew Nichols bought the company and began to export theatre lights to Australia and then to Southeast Asia. All products were designed in house and, within a decade, 90 percent of the company's total revenues came from exports. Selecon luminaires can be spotted now as far afield as the Opéra Bastille in Paris, the Odessa Opera and Ballet Theater in Ukraine and the Sydney Opera House in Australia.

Though the company had a successful international business and had set up its own warehouses in Europe and the United States, by 2006 the company had somewhat lost its way.

Jeremy Collins, General Manager, says "It is well documented that as companies grow they reach a plateau. We had got to the stage where we were thinking 'Ok, where do we go from here? What are the opportunities? How do we differentiate ourselves?' "

Brand clarity

In October, 2006 Selecon sought advice from Better by Design. They were conscious of two areas of weakness: one was product design around the needs of the end user and, secondly, while their position in the world market was strong and positive, they were increasingly frustrated at their inability to communicate to their market exactly what their unique proposition was.

Better by Design challenged Selecon to analyse what they really do and in Collins' words that was "we simply use light to tell a story. It doesn't matter whether it is on a stage, a studio or lighting for a museum."

In other words, their brand story was more about theatre, than technology. "Just that simple revelation and clarification gave us confidence," says Collins.

"We can talk to the lighting designer at the museum because at the end of the day they are trying to tell a story, or talk to designers at a theatre because they are staging a show. That is a very simple example on the brand side of how Better by Design helped us, and it has been very empowering. The most important thing Better by Design does is to inspire and empower leadership."

Boosting productivity through design integration and lean thinking
Since undertaking the Design Integration Programme and introducing lean thinking principles, the company has seen a 60 percent increase in productivity and definite benefits to the company's bottom line.

"There is no question that it was worth it. It was worth it because of the way it has broadened our vision as to what we can do in our market place, in terms of the standard of product we can bring to the market place, and by placing the end user at the core of that product.

"Better by Design also helped us, through clear external and internal communication, to achieve business growth during the recession."

A bright future

Selecon's newfound clarity of vision and purpose also attracted the attention of global lighting company, Philips, who purchased the company, now known as Philips Selecon, in early 2009. Collins says the challenge for the company moving into the future is to continue to produce innovative products from its New Zealand base, and it is looking to employ more New Zealand designers to work on new product development.

Although Collins says the benefits of Better by Design are now obvious, he says he was at first sceptical about getting involved in a Government initiated programme.

"It has been interesting through this process. My own position about whether Government can constructively engage with business in a carefully structured and targeted programme has changed as a result of our relationship with Better by Design and New Zealand Trade and Enterprise. I think the most significant thing about Better by Design is that it is a holistic programme. You need to get into it and commit to it and live it."

Jeremy Collins' advice to companies considering Better by Design is to "first of all realise the depth and importance of the decision. You are talking about something that can change your business.

Then don't just talk about it, just bloody well do it."