Building the Operating Foundation

Establishing a successful after-sales service operation involves far more than opening a repair workshop.

For a global professional imaging brand such as Profoto, customers expect the same level of service quality regardless of where their products are used. As the number of professional photographers and commercial studios using Profoto equipment continued to grow across mainland China, providing reliable local after-sales support became increasingly important.

A dedicated service operation was needed—not only to perform repairs, but to ensure consistent customer communication, controlled logistics, reliable quality management and long-term operational stability.

Why an Operational Partner?

Building a professional after-sales service center requires expertise in much more than product repair.

Every stage of the customer journey must be carefully managed, from receiving products and verifying warranty information to repair management, quality inspection, logistics coordination and final product return. These processes require standardized workflows, trained personnel, documented procedures and continuous operational management.

Rather than developing these capabilities internally, Profoto chose to work with a dedicated operational partner capable of building and managing a complete after-sales service system for the Chinese market.

Why AXION HUB?

The project is operated under the AXION HUB brand by Shanghai Jinwei Culture Communication Co., Ltd., a company wholly owned by the founder of AXION HUB.

Rather than functioning as a conventional repair provider, AXION HUB was responsible for designing and operating the complete service workflow. Technical repair was only one part of the project. Equal importance was placed on customer experience, operational consistency, quality control and continuous improvement.

From the beginning, the objective was to create an operation that could continue to improve over time rather than relying solely on the experience of individual engineers.

Scope of the Operation

The Profoto China After-sales Service Center provides a comprehensive after-sales service operation covering the complete product lifecycle.

The scope of the project includes customer reception, product registration, technical diagnosis, repair services, quality inspection, logistics coordination, warranty administration, customer communication and repair record management.

The operation also supports seamless coordination with the Profoto Official Tmall Store, allowing online sales and after-sales service to function as one connected customer experience.

For professional users, additional services such as VIP product maintenance, preventive inspection and equipment care are provided to help customers maintain the long-term reliability of their equipment.

The operation continues beyond product repair. Failed components are managed through controlled replacement procedures, while retired parts are documented and securely destroyed in accordance with internal quality management requirements, ensuring full traceability throughout the service process.

A Long-term Operational Commitment

Official operations began in 2020 at the service center located in Jiading Industrial Zone, Shanghai, where the team established a stable after-sales operation serving customers throughout mainland China.

As the project continued to develop, the operation expanded beyond daily repair activities. Experience gained through customer service, technical support, logistics management and quality control gradually evolved into standardized operational practices that could be applied across future projects.

To support this continued development, the company will relocate to a new headquarters in Putuo District, Shanghai, with trial operations scheduled to begin on 1 August 2026.

The relocation represents more than the opening of a new facility.

The new operations center is being developed according to the AXION HUB Operations Standard (AHOS), integrating dedicated repair areas, quality management, logistics operations, ESD control, engineer training and digital operational systems within a single operational environment.

While continuing to serve as the Profoto China After-sales Service Center, the new headquarters will also become the operational foundation for future after-sales service projects supported by AXION HUB, allowing the experience gained from one successful project to be expanded into a standardized platform capable of supporting multiple international brands.