eseller
.co.uk
Print.IT Reseller 17
15 years ago, an acquisition by the
huge worldwide distribution company
Tech Data Corporation established
30-year-old Computer 2000 as its UK
arm. But it was only in October this
year that Computer 2000 rebranded
and commenced trading under the
name of its parent company.
The group is one of the world’s largest
wholesale distributors of technology
products, services and solutions. Its
advanced logistics capabilities and value
added services enable 120,000 resellers
in more than 100 countries to efficiently
and cost effectively support the diverse
technology needs of end users.
Tech Data UK Print and Supplies
Manager Mark Porter said that apart from
the name change, it’s very much business as
usual. “We’ve retained the same telephone
numbers, legacy email addresses are still
in use and we’ve launched a new website
utilising the new company name. Now we
are focussed on establishing ourselves as
Tech Data.”
In the UK, the company has more than
three decades’ experience in distribution.
“Doing business with Tech Data gives
solutions providers end-to-end access to a
vast array of technology products, alongside
a comprehensive range of services, including
financing, technical training and marketing
support,” said Porter.
“Tech Data runs the same system across
the globe and trading under one name
provides us with the opportunity to promote
this global reach; we can ship solutions for
our customers anywhere in the world and
that’s something that does set us apart,”
he added.
Consistent growth
Porter said: “Each manufacturer we work
with tells us that we sell more of their offer
to a broader depth of resellers than anyone
else for them and that’s something we’re
very proud of.”
Print and supplies continue to make
a positive contribution to Tech Data’s
broadline business. For Tech Data, laser
printers remain the biggest seller – some
70% of total print hardware sales fall into
this product category, with inkjet making up
the remaining 30%.
“Year-on-year we have seen 5 to 10%
growth in our print and supplies division and
next year we’re expecting a 25% growth,”
said Porter.
Another area where Tech Data is
experiencing significant growth is in
scanners. “More and more organisations
are installing scanners: in Q1 last year we
saw a 15-20% growth in unit sales and that
growth has remained constant year-on-
year,” he said.
“People want easy access to documents
and there is a move towards a paper-less
office environment. We’re seeing lots of
Local service delivered
on a global scale
printers sold on the back of scanning
solutions as more companies move to create
an integrated workflow,” he added.
Customer service
The company has three key routes to market
spanning retail, SMB and corporate, each
of which has a dedicated print business
development manager charged with growth
in their respective sectors.
For resellers, the hardware offering
includes standalone scanners, desktop
printers, large MFPs, through to mid-range
production devices. Each vendor has a
dedicated category manager responsible
for bringing the technology to market via a
customer base that includes traditional print
dealers, VARs, systems integrators and office
stationers.
“As an organisation we’re focussed
on servicing customers in the best way
possible,” explained Porter. “We have
dedicated print specialists within each of
our routes to market. For example in the
corporate space, we provide dedicated
account management to customers
geographically spread across the UK and
Ireland.”
Among its customer base Tech Data
serves a number of traditional print resellers
who also offer IT services, alongside others
who stick to their core knowledge base and
on occasion need to tap into IT expertise.
Similarly, many VARS will manage the IT
infrastructure on behalf of their customers
but prefer to bring a print specialist on
board when required.
“It’s here that Tech Data delivers the
value-add,” said Porter. “Over and above the
typical distribution offer – our warehousing
and logistics footprint, the ability to ship
direct to the end-user and credit facilities –
we also provide extra services. For example,
we will conduct on-site installations and
carry out hardware configurations on our
customers’ behalf,” he said.
As to future plans, Porter said that Tech
Data has got significant growth plans in a
number of new and existing areas. “And
we are looking to launch a new supplies
service that resellers will be able to deploy
at customer sites. Essentially it will monitor
supplies and provide fail alerts and link
into our system so that new supplies are
automatically ordered and replenished,
saving both resellers and customers money.”
Tech Data offers dealers a range of print, supplies and document
management solutions from vendors including Canon, Epson, HP,
Samsung, Fujitsu and Xerox.
Tech Data
Year-on-year
we have
seen 5 to
10% growth
in our print
and supplies
division
and next
year we’re
expecting a
25% growth.
Mark Porter,
Print and Supplies
Manager,
Tech Data UK
