Ricoh Sings Office Tech Partner Praises in “Music City”
Improving profit efficiency is a main goal for independent office technology dealers as well as for Ricoh USA, Inc., said Jim Coriddi, chief dealer officer, at the Ricoh “Advantage” Dealer Summit earlier this fall. “Growth is different today,” he told the Nashville audience. “Customers are changing, and print is changing . . . but this is a dynamic time. We think it’s a time to grow.”
Ricoh is helping several large dealers to secure net-new deals. “We’ve had 75 wins to date,” Coriddi reported, citing success especially within the education and state/local government (SLG) enterprise sectors. Greg Conroy, president of OMNI Business Solutions, explained to dealer peers how Ricoh’s Financial Services have helped the East Coast firm to secure a pair of six-figure contracts with school district and municipal government clients in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
Ricoh stands poised to help more dealer partners land net-new business. Coriddi noted: “This is a mature industry and, as John Hey, partner at Strategic Business Associates, likes to tell dealers, ‘If you’re not doing 20% in net new, you’re not growing.’”
Carsten Bruhn, president and CEO of Ricoh USA, proclaimed that “trust is the strongest currency.” Bruhn noted that never before has he seen so many external factors impacting the business, urging dealers to focus on what they can control and to remain calm amid technological change. We are living in a world of unpredictability, he continued, in which “an agile operating model is absolutely necessary.”
Ricoh USA Chief Dealer Officer Jim Coriddi (left) and President/CEO Carsten Bruhn.
Tied into Ricoh’s desire to seize more market share is the project-management practice of target value delivery (TVD), Chief Executive Officer Bruhn added. A disciplined, proactive approach, TVD is focused on innovating, reducing waste, and delivering customer value within budget and schedule constraints. Globally, Ricoh corporate has become closer to its customers on a regional basis, he noted.
Gartner C-suite advisor Kevin Hooper joined the Ricoh Dealer Summit program on the Nashville stage for a discussion about competitive displacement. “Buyers are changing,” Hooper pointed out to dealers, and “. . . sellers are getting younger,” he added, citing the Gen Z example. Also: Cost cutting is not a sound strategy, he warned, during the present economic state of uncertainty, which he termed as a “transitory recession.”
Next, the “power” of Ricoh’s software and services was addressed by Bob Lamendola, chief digital services and delivery officer, and Scott Kitchens, national manager of solution sales. The OEM is leveraging artificial intelligence (AI), Lamendola said, and has been working internally for the past 12 months to build the Ricoh Intelligence System.
In addition to enhanced security, intelligent document processing and scanning continue to be part of Ricoh’s digital transformation (DX) strategy through its DocuWare connectivity. It’s not about technology, Kitchens informed dealers. It’s about transformation. “The customer is not buying scans,” he said. “They’re buying speed, compliance, and labor savings. Sell consumption-based AI that pays you per page.”
Gartner C-suite advisor Kevin Hooper (right) joined Coriddi on the Nashville stage during the Ricoh Dealer Summit.
Tariff Troubles and A4 Bright Spots
Technology is democratized thanks to “the cloud” and AI, observed Scott Dabice, VP of North American commercial operations and strategy at Ricoh USA, whom Bruhn credited with the OEM’s effective tariff pricing response during the second and third quarters of 2025, during which Ricoh absorbed some $200 million in tariff costs. The OEM maintains a diverse supply chain, shifting more manufacturing to Thailand and Japan and away from China. The ETRIA joint venture for MFP research and development, formed in mid-2024 between Ricoh and Toshiba Tec, “helps big time,” Coriddi explained, adding that the addition of OKI earlier this year will further strengthen the A4 line (there are 24 models now) along with the alliance with Brother (which adds another 19 A4 SKUs) announced this past June.
Many dealers seek to replace A3 clicks, Bryan Smith said in the conference’s A4 breakout session. Smith left Brother USA this past August to rejoin Ricoh as a technology solutions consultant. (He also had been with Southeast U.S. dealer Milner for three years in a strategic accounts/vendor relations role.) A4 can help to fill gaps in the managed print services (MPS) space. “Dealers can bundle A4 products with service contracts and MPS,” Smith said. Brother now sells five EX models exclusively through dealers. The MFC-EX575 33 page-per-minute (ppm) printer began shipping in late November 2025.
The Brother line also shares toner and other consumables, Smith pointed out, so there’s the “supply closet” talk track for dealers to consider. From a cost-per-page (CCP) standpoint, Ricoh also can analyze makes, models, and average monthly volumes to assist with A4 predictive assessments. “This is a powerful tool!” he exclaimed.
Margins are there and money can be made in A4 color, which is still showing growth, according to Marlene Orr, Ricoh senior product manager; the former Keypoint Intelligence and Buyers Lab analyst supported her statements with IDC statistics. Two Midwest dealerships in Minnesota are experiencing A4 success through the Ricoh-Brother partnership. Video testimonials were shown featuring Tony Gruenke, general sales manager of employee-owned Metro Sales Inc., and Daniel Cho, president/founder of Innovative Office Solutions (IOS). Meanwhile, in North Carolina, Kelly Office Solutions offers its customers mixed fleet options. As one of Brother’s largest U.S. dealers, Kelly also carries Ricoh. “The combination of these two [OEMs] is a win,” believes President Tim Renegar.
On the traditional A3 laser front, Coriddi cited Ricoh’s IM C Series multifunction printers, announcing a black-and-white device refresh coming sometime next year. The OEM launched its high-end, 80-ppm IM C8010 in mid-2025.
Bruce Gibbs (center), president of St. Louis-based GFI Digital, reports that the dealership has added 35 million net new color clicks to its business by adding production printing.
On Day 2, Brian Balow, VP of U.S. channel sales and services for Ricoh USA, introduced Bruce Gibbs, president of St. Louis-based dealer GFI Digital. Over the past two years, Gibbs has opened his mind to production printing. Is it working? Last year, he reported, GFI added 35 million net new color clicks to its business. “This is what good looks like,” Balow noted, in a production print context.
The Future of Ricoh Service?
In total, Coriddi pointed out that key representatives from “a little over 100 dealerships” were present in Nashville. For Ricoh’s smaller and mid-tier dealer partners, many of whom seek ongoing training, he added that more webinars are planned heading into the first quarter of 2026.
While it is impossible to predict our AI future three to five years from now, leading with digital is coming to the office technology dealer channel, say senior Ricoh executives. To succeed in the near term, dealerships of all sizes need to begin the shift from transactional to annuity mind sets, believes Lamendola. He added that there is a clear path to profit by leading with digital, which, in turn, often can mean printing hardware sales, too.
Scott Dabice (at left) is Ricoh’s VP of North American commercial operations and strategy.
Juan Maldonado, VP of service at UBEO Business Services (San Antonio, Texas) spoke to the OEM’s Technical Services. Chris DeMars, Ricoh director of dealer services, explained that UBEO is 18 months into a pilot program called Ricoh Intelligent Support, which features three key components:
- a “rights” emulator/training simulator
- an Advanced Remote Mobile System (ARMS) to assist with on-site service access
- and a “smart” configurator
So far, “the techs love the ARMS app,” Maldonado said, especially the video problem-resolution functionality. DeMars noted that this new-wave support system “can improve call avoidance and customer satisfaction. It’s another way for dealers to drive efficiency and reduce labor pressures.”
What other changes can dealers expect in the service area? Coriddi shared that Ricoh continues to find ways to remedy inefficient processes and help its dealer partners get more from the investments they’ve made. “We are looking at how to effectively share technicians as well as rethinking our aftermarket philosophy, treating the supply chain as a service,” he explained.
As part of this shake up, Ricoh is engaged in Phase 1 of its Dealer Integration Initiative—working with members of its Dealer Advisory Group, including Applied Innovation (Michigan), Metro Sales (Minneapolis), RJ Young (Nashville), and Stratix Systems (New Jersey and Pennsylvania). “This is a three-year play, and it’s hard work,” Coriddi admitted, “essentially changing our business model as partners. It could prove to be a real industry disruptor.”
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