Customer case Alleeninkt.nl
“With Picqer, one employee can do the work of four or five people”
About Alleeninkt
When Nick van Klinken was still studying, he discovered the cartridge market through his father. Together with his friend Daniel Keute, he specialized in it. Their webshop Alleeninkt.nl has grown into one of the largest online ink sellers in the Netherlands in recent years.
Alleeninkt.nl has been using Picqer since 2018. This interview took place in March 2019.
You were in your early twenties when you started an ink webshop. How did that idea come about?
“When Daniel and I were still studying, we earned some money as furniture makers. We mainly designed concrete tabletops, and to sell them online, we developed a webshop. We quickly realized that concrete is a tricky natural product and that a photo doesn’t give a true representation. So, we had a webshop without products. Shortly after, my father pointed out the big price differences for cartridges. I looked into it and saw a market. Daniel and I each invested 200 euros and started Alleeninkt.nl.”
Weren’t there already other online ink stores?
“Yes, but we bought cartridges cheaper abroad and sold them through Marktplaats, directing buyers to our webshop. Everything we earned, we reinvested into the webshop. We never had to take out a loan.”
How did you grow into a top-3 player?
“Over the past years, we worked day and night to improve and market our webshop. The competition among online stores is fierce, but if you dedicate yourself 100% to your brand, there is always room. We quickly realized that marketing is essential—visibility can be bought. It didn’t immediately pay off with the first customers, but it did when they returned. That’s why we invested in excellent customer service. We go the extra mile in advising and solving problems. Because Alleeninkt.nl specializes entirely in cartridges, selling only a few related items like paper and batteries, our employees can provide expert advice. If you buy cartridges from a large general retailer and they don’t work, you’ll get your money back, but you’ll have to figure out why they didn’t work yourself.”
Have things gone wrong over the years?
“We once signed a one-year contract with a marketing agency. After two months, we knew it wasn’t working, but we were stuck for ten more months. Our gut feeling wasn’t right from the start, and now we know: if in doubt, don’t do it. We also keep contracts as flexible as possible. That sometimes costs more per month, but we can also cancel them quickly. We also learned to negotiate. In the beginning, as 23-year-old rookies working from an attic, we had to negotiate with PostNL. Sometimes we had no leverage—our packages had to be shipped. Now, with hundreds of daily shipments, we are a serious player in the market.”
You switched to Picqer in 2017. How did you find us?
“Our webshop ran on an outdated WordPress e-commerce tool until 2017. Packing orders took a long time, we managed inventory in Excel, and we had to perform many unnecessary manual tasks. While searching for a new warehouse tool, I quickly found Picqer. They were more affordable than larger providers, and we clicked immediately with the entrepreneurs behind Picqer. Our website developer was also enthusiastic and immediately saw the potential.”
What is the difference compared to the old system?
“There is now a smooth workflow in the warehouse. We can track all orders quickly, and the error margin has significantly decreased. Every employee has their own account, the system is easily scalable, and a temporary employee gets a login and can start immediately. With Picqer, one employee can do the work of four or five people. On Black Friday or other busy days, we can easily step in ourselves. The system handles changes well. The only downside is that Picqer doesn’t offer custom solutions—it would be much more expensive if they did—but they are open to ideas.”
What do you see for the future?
“I don’t have a crystal ball, but digitization will eventually bring an alternative to printing. That’s why we always ensure we’re profitable. At the same time, more printing happens during a growing economy, and e-commerce is expanding rapidly, so I’m not worried for now.”
