Compaq seeks sole direct sales partner
Only one of the vendor?s channel partners will be chosen to accompany it down the direct sales route
Compaq is preparing to send out a tender document inviting channel partners to become the sole fulfilment centre for its direct sales operation.
The tender document, due out in the next few weeks, will outline the criteria its fulfilment partner will need to satisfy. The chosen candidate will need to have configuration facilities, warehouse space to store the stock and already be selling Compaq kit in high volumes.
Peter Blampied, Compaq commercial marketing manager, said the manufacturer needed to resolve the matter promptly.
?We are looking for a single partner to act as a sub-contractor. It will pick, configure and ship, so the links between us need to be tight,? he said.
Speculation surrounds the names likely to be on the tender list. Elcom operations director Jacky Raybould said the final choice would probably be Computacenter, ETC, Tplc or Elcom. ?It won?t be restricted to distributors, but it will need to be companies that do high volumes and it will need to be someone who can handle a next-day delivery service.?
Computacenter MD Mike Norris said the contract would only be worth having if the work was priced attractively. ?Yes, Computacenter would be interested in the work, but it would depend on the price.?
Channel observers have speculated that Compaq may appoint a broadline distributor to avoid friction between its large account resellers. ?If Compaq chooses Ingram Micro, it could at least say to all its resellers, ?look it?s not as if it is competing with you?. So, it might go to a broadliner for political reasons,? said one source.
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