WMC Jackson may be SDCE’s furthest-flung distributor, but the relationship between the two businesses continues to flourish across nine time zones. Here, managing director Peter Jackson takes time out from his Melbourne headquarters to reveal how his company delivers SDCE values to customers on the other side of the world.
From its hip location in Collingwood, WMC Jackson is somewhat of an institution for textile testing. Throughout the Great Depression, the second world war and the economic prosperity of the mid-20th century, WMC Jackson has weathered worldwide conditions with the consistency that is so imperative in the meticulous world of textile testing.
Renowned for its portfolio of brands from all over the world, WMC Jackson has become the gateway for global leaders into the continent of Australasia. The company’s relationship with SDCE began back in 2006 with the acquisition of Chemtex, a local supplier of textile testing equipment and a company which was already a regular user of SDCE consumables.
“SDCE consumables are held in high regard across Australia because of the range of the products, and the quality of each individual item,” says Peter Jackson, managing director at WMC Jackson. “We were appointed as the official distributor for Australia – and SDCE’s first representation in the whole of Australasia – within the same year, and we have enjoyed an excellent relationship with the company ever since.”
For WMC Jackson, there was a certain synergy between SDCE’s combined values of tradition and innovation, and its own approach to the operation of a successful business model.
“We pride ourselves to this day on our service to the industry and our many valued customers,” says Jackson. “Our management has been passed through three generations of the Jackson family since my grandfather founded the company in 1921, and many members of the family are actively involved in its day-to-day running to this day.
“Our family-run values and heritage however have never stood in the way of progress; the company has moved with the times continually, keeping up to date with technology in the sewing, knitting and textile industries.”
Today, WMC Jackson currently represents 25 of the sector’s leading brands including Groz-Beckert and Schmetz, as well as SDCE. Its 12-strong workforce covers all aspects of sales and delivery across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Island States, regularly making the long journey to the Northern Hemisphere to maintain its relationship with its European business partners.
Most recently, Peter Jackson made the journey to ITMA Barcelona in June this year to catch up with the SDCE team, and discover its new projects including the launch of the Proficiency Testing Programme.
“It’s always good to catch up with the team at SDCE in person,” he says. “We enjoyed a successful exhibition at ITMA Barcelona, and look forward to expanding our business as a joint venture across Australia and beyond in the months and years to come.”
Find out more about WMC Jackson here, and discover the full portfolio of SDCE products here.
