Samsung VARs get new lease of life

Printer vendor unveils zero-interest leasing programme

Samsung has become the latest vendor to step into the breach caused by trade credit shrinkage, rolling out a zero-interest leasing programme for IT resellers carrying its business print range across Europe.

Abby Denton, UK channel marketing manager at Samsung, said the move, in partnership with Dutch financier De Lage Landen (DLL), was a response to the tough economic conditions and should help boost sales opportunities for resellers.

“We are at the stage of implementation and are taking it out to our resellers,” she said.

Deals must come in at between £5,000 and £100,000, with 70 per cent of that coming from Samsung print products. The interest-free finance is available for terms of 24 or 36 months.

The programme will run until the end of May 2010, after which it will be evaluated.

Feedback from the channel is welcome, said Denton. “We want to ensure this financing is operating in the right way.”

An administration fee of £125 will also apply, she said.

This is a new move for Samsung, which is known more for its consumer products.

However, in a parallel move, it is also rolling out a non-residual value product to its Office Automation (OA) partners, for which it has already been engaged in leasing programmes.

The partnership with DLL is new. “DLL works with some of our key competitors and has lots of experience in this marketplace,” said Denton. “It has also offered us good rates.”

Steve Pearce, solutions marketing manager at Samsung, said that all Samsung products could be included as part of the overall deal.

“We plan to bring out a deluxe suite of software that will fit into this programme,” Pearce said.

Karel Schellens, chief executive of DLL, said 2008 saw a financial crisis.

“But we are still here. Better yet, we made a net profit of €235m (£200m),” he said.