1. Q: Could you tell us a bit more about Phos Lighting?
A: Phos Lighting is a multi-award winning family company which was founded in 1883. Me, my brother, father and two other directors run an architectural company of around 55/60 people. We make really small and powerful LED lights with vibrant colour rendering and are all about designing and manufacturing natural light solutions with a focus on biophilic design, which aims to combine our technology with the natural environment. Over the years we have specialised in honing an industry-leading palette of flawless finishes, including natural ones such as limestone, sandstone, rust and bronze.
We were involved in making Spitfire airplanes in WW2 and then worked on mesh filters for Boeing airplanes and Rolls Royce’s aeronautical division. They asked whether we could produce mesh for decorative purposes and whether we could also light it. Basically we have always used our engineering skills to make a good functioning product.
2. Q: We understand you recently published a book about light?
A: Indeed. The book is called ‘The Light Within’ and is published by ourselves. Phos is much more than just a family lighting company. We are passionate about the power of light and its ability to improve the world around us. With that in mind, we have combined eight years of passionate research, exploration, and discovery, into one inspiring book, that aims to explain the neuroscience of light and biophilic design. This knowledge allows us to develop and design some of the most amazing lighting concepts for our customers.
3. Q: Have you been working on any exciting projects over the years?
A: I think the list of exciting ones is quite long and includes lighting the flagship Fortnum and Mason store in Piccadilly, the Microsoft head offices in Paddington and the Tower of London. We have also worked on various famous hotels and luxury yachts both in the UK and abroad as well since exciting customers tend to find us quite easily.
When it comes to sustainability we also try to play our part as we are now B-Corp certified. This means we meet certain high standards for social and environmental performance. Phos is also off-grid as we have solar panels on the roof of our premises and we plant trees to offset carbon emissions. Circularity is increasingly important which is why we started the Phos Regeneration initiative which means our products are 97% recyclable. We have also recently been awarded the King’s Award for Enterprise making us one of the top companies in the UK in terms of international growth and performance.
4. Q: How do you see the future of Phos?
A: Three years ago the international share of our turnover amounted to 15%. This increased to 35% due to Phos engaging strategic agents and opening offices around the world. We will continue to expand our overseas presence while maintaining our production facilities as much as possible in the UK to maintain our deeply rooted culture there.
5. Q: What team do you work with?
A: As said, Phos employs around 55 to 60 people within the UK. We also work with agents that are strategically chosen to offer superior support abroad. We have around 11 sales reps of which 4/5 are operating internationally.
6. Q: When did Phos and ERPiQ (Hagit/Adar) cross paths?
A: Hagit and Adar got involved with Phos around 2019. We have so many moving parts in our company and need to make sure we end up with a superior bespoke product. Hagit and Adar have great knowledge of Priority, which is the ERP-software program we use. The support from the team at ERPiQ has always been great. The bespoke ERP-environment allows us to customise our products from front to end in line with our operating mechanisms. ERPiQ has enabled us to effectively interlink our procurement, sales and CRM-systems to connect a team spread across the world into one strategy.
7. Q: How did working with ERPiQ benefit your company?
A: The biggest difference was moving from our old system to this one. This allowed us to manage and clarify data from each department. We now know how to nurture our clients more, while being able to service our existing ones in the best possible way. ERPiQ has given us an all-round better view of our entire business and the procurement has really improved. We now work fully cloud based, while a few years ago we were bound to an old clunky system that made nurturing our valued clients more difficult. The transformation ERPiQ has guided us through really is amazing.
8. Q: Biggest achievements at Phos?
A: Receiving the Kings Award for international enterprise, which we just won a weeks ago in recognition for our achievements and contributions to the lighting industry. For us it summarises that the products and employees we have are recognised. Becoming a top 10 performer in the industry is made so much more achievable with a solid ERP-system which enables us to provide sustainable and innovative human focused lighting solutions.