An exclusive interview with Nicolas Guillemot, Deputy Sales Director Asia Pacific of Hercules Thrustmaster SAS
Company Profile
- Headquarters Country: France
- Industry: Gaming accessories
- Hit Products: T-GT, the world leader of PlayStation steering wheels, eSwap modular gamepad, flight controllers and many other pro- and semi-pro gamer controllers.
The Challenges
- Thrustmaster already had three distributor when they contacted Next Level. Communication and negotiation was becoming problematic over time due to the time difference with HQ, and the fast increase of the business.
- Align with, and sustain Thrustmaster growth locally, Thrustmaster needed local presence.
The Solution
- Next Level provided a dedicated Regional Manager, who handled the local relationship management, performed the in-person meetings, improving Distributor communication and seizing all business opportunity,
- New Accounts were open, and digital channels were given a boost, contributing to previously unseen growth.
About Thrustmaster
“ For over 30 years, Thrustmaster has been creating state-of-the-art racing and flight simulation accessories to satisfy and entertain every type of gamer.
Thrustmaster products — including racing wheels, flight simulation gear, headsets and gamepads — are designed for highly-precise gaming experiences, ensuring total immersion and enhanced realism across a wide variety of platforms.
“Passion, Quality and Innovation”
Thrustmaster constantly strives to reach new levels of realism and immersion in gaming, making thrilling and genuinely exceptional experiences a reality. From hardcore sim racers to casual first time users and everyone in between, Thrustmaster’s accessories for PC and consoles make every player’s gaming dreams possible. ”
How did Next Level contribute to your ANZ channel growth?
“ Next Level has allowed us to better better anticipate and adapt to the sales growth by receiving regular market insights. ”
With the 2020 release of Microsoft Flight Simulator, Thrustmaster’s status as the world leader in Flight Simulation was further reinforced in Australia & New Zealand.
“ Their dedicated Account Manager played a key role in developing and managing local relationships, such as new direct relationships with certain strategic retail partners, partnerships in eSports (Fortress Melbourne, eSeries Supercars) and Racing (Melbourne F1 Grand Prix), which could never have been made possible remotely.
Closer contacts with our local partners have allowed us to really tap into the potential of the Australian and New Zealand markets. Since we’ve started working with Next Level in the region a year ago, our sales have more than doubled and our products are available in a larger number of stores. ”
Noteworthy Projects
• Local presence allowed Thrustmaster to participate in more events and strengthen its local brand awareness.
• Thrustmaster was a proud sponsor of Fortress eSports as well as the Supercars eSeries in 2020. Both of which were done in close partnership with its cockpit partner Next Level Racing, and made possible by the local presence of the Account Manager.
Image: Fortress eSports in Melbourne for the 2019 F1 Grand Prix, proudly sponsored by Thrustmaster
What about New Zealand?
“ New Zealand has experienced huge growth over the last 12 months. Much like Australia, our growth there was supported by Next Level.
Next Level helped us to better match with New Zealand market tempo and growth. We could reinforce the partnership with our partners and better anticipate their sales and needs.
During these days of pandemic, this local presence was more than essential to keep the link with our partners and establish new ways & routines of dealing with them. ”
Nicolas Guillemot
Deputy Sales Director Asia Pacific
Hercules Thrustmaster SAS
Download a PDF version: Thrustmaster Australia Case Study