Channelling Cambodia in Phnom Penh

Lim Vanna, general manager at another long-running Phnom Penh reseller, Info-Tech Computer System, agrees with much of what Rajvanshi says.

"This country is not linked to the outside world for business yet. And it’s still a very small market in Cambodia," he says.

"Phnom Penh itself is just 10 square kilometres, but it looks like we’re going OK."

The market is also very tough, he says, and corruption is a major cause.

In south-east Asian terms, Cambodia is a ‘very free’ country, Lim points out, but sometimes that means people are free to do less desirable things – such as bribery and extortion.

"Anyone might come and get US$10 or US$20. The fire department, the police," Lim says. "And, actually, we are willing to pay. So that is a problem."

Cambodian police, it is jokingly said, are the best that money can buy. Few businesses are exempt from regular ‘protection’ payments to local police or other enterprising officials.

Even hospitals and ambulance services have been known to request payment on the side.

The government has officially admitted that corruption – even at the highest levels – is a problem. Moves are being made to address the issue at all levels but change will come slowly, commentators agree.

Lim says taxation is also heavy. In neighbouring Vietnam, the equivalent of GST or VAT is a paltry five percent. Cambodia’s government charges 15 percent tax plus 10 percent VAT – a total 25 percent.

"You can’t make big money in Cambodia. Just enough to survive for our people," Lim says.

Info-Tech started in 1994 as a broad-based distributor of computer hardware and peripherals, but expanded into services and support for NGOs, government and companies all over Cambodia.

Info-Tech is as modern in its approach as many similar Australian resellers.

Besides importing, selling and servicing global brands like TSI, Toshiba, IBM, HP, Compaq and Dell, it specialises in network design, WAN and LAN deployment, network trouble-shooting, security services, internet and email solutions, consultancy and outsourcing, using its team of 15 qualified engineers.

It also has a sideline in services for QuickBooks accounting software, and property consultancy. Extra support can be sourced from an associated Singapore company and it expects to open an office in London soon.

"The only difference is, we are selling [also] but in Singapore they don’t sell," Lim says.

Like in Australia, the customer is king. Info-Tech gives 24-hour support, and although hardware might need to be sent to Singapore for repairs, Info-Tech lends customers replacement systems while they wait.

"Our commitment to customers is very strong," Lim says. "We don’t do much advertising. Friends employ friends."

And it is needed, because Cambodian customers, he says, tend to take shortcuts. A second-hand car can be patched up and sent back out to do sterling service. So why not a computer?

Lim sees his job as partly to educate people about the different and complex needs of IT infrastructure.

Yes, a second-hand computer is cheaper and can often be fixed. But users need to know the hardware and software they invest in will actually support the kind of infrastructure required to run their business efficiently.

"They don’t understand that with computing, there are other factors, such as what application you are going to use," he says.

"They’re trying to save money, so second-hand gear is quite popular. I can give them a price like US$500, but there is no warranty. I try to convince them.

"For selling a computer is just like selling a banana. You have to eat the whole banana, you can’t wait for next week," Lim says.

And what about Phnom Penh life outside business?

Thakral’s Rajvanshi says that, all said and done, his family is quite happy here. His children – a girl, Tanvi, aged 11 and a boy, Aditya, aged six – attend the International School.

The family all like to play sports, but clubs are expensive in Phnom Penh.

"I like this place for one single reason. Good hours for work, and good numbers of hours for your personal life and family," he says.

"Life is not so difficult now. In the early years, it was not so good."

"But there’s no cricket," Rajvanshi says. "We had to organise cricket ourselves on a weekly basis and even had a Boxing Day match about two years back. There were quite a few Australians at that."