We often hear a semi-confused tone when somebody who is not familiar with our company says our name for the first time: “Doe-see-o?” Doceo is Latin word that the original founders, John Lewis, Dave Bryson and Christian White, discovered and agreed upon for its unique sound and its meaning that aligned with our vision, both past and present.

To put it simply, Doceo means ‘to teach, instruct, show or inform’ in Latin.

The story behind the name

In early 2000 when our CEO, John Lewis, made the bold decision to open up his own copier company, he knew that he wanted a name that was different from his competitors and created intrigue all while having meaning behind it. That is a lot of boxes to check in a name! John and a small group of professionals put their thinking caps on and began brainstorming words and phrases that spanned across the spectrum of artistic and technical words, to other languages.

Once John and his team landed on the Latin word Doceo, they knew instantly that this was the name that they had been searching for. Part of Doceo’s mission is to not just sell or lease business equipment and technology to our customers, but to teach them as much as we can when it comes to how their products and/or software work. We believe that the more our customers understand their office technology, the better equipped they are for smooth day-to-day operations and for achieving their goals.

From 2004-2018, Doceo’s full name was ‘Doceo Office Solutions’. After researching competitor names, it was evident that almost every single name had ‘business solutions’, ‘office solutions’, ‘business systems’ or something similar after it as a clear company descriptor. Because Doceo was such a unique and uncommon word, John felt that it was very appropriate to put ‘Office Solutions’ after Doceo so that a potential customer could see our logo and know right away that we could be an asset to their business.

The times are changing

Fast forward to 2017 and the landscape of our industry has changed drastically since Doceo first opened their doors in 2004. While copiers, printers and paper is still very much relevant in almost any business, the world is digital and continually heading towards a paperless path. In order to keep up with the changing times and ensure Doceo’s future, John and his Leadership Team made the decision to dive into the world of IT through buying out two, small IT companies. Along with offering a number of comprehensive IT services, Doceo also started to carry and sell Document Management solutions.

In 2018, Doceo went through some major rebranding changes. This fell in line with our rapid growth into the IT world, as well as coming out with the simplified name of just Doceo. We are growing and continually adding more products and services to help us better serve our Customers. Doceo is an ambiguous word with a lot of meaning – no matter what our future holds, we will always be teaching our Customers something to in turn, help them run their business better and smarter. The name Doceo will never put our potential in box. The sky is truly the limit!

We hope this blog post taught you something about our name and why we are proud to stand behind it.