Fujitsu expands VAR base
Vendor looks to extend reach in the UK PC market
Fujitsu Siemens is looking for an additional 140 SME resellers to extend its reach in the UK PC market.
The vendor's Elite channel programme has 270 resellers supplying SMEs in the UK, and helped the vendor's UK sales jump by 28 per cent in 2002.
Ian Snadden, channel and SME sales director UK at Fujitsu, said that although the company has grown its business in the UK, there is still a long way to go.
"We are probably one of the top three vendors in the UK in terms of size," he said. "But it is time for us to stretch our legs further into the UK channel.
"We set out two years ago to formalise our accreditation and add value behind it. We have exceeded our target of 250 resellers and now we want to reach more."
The Elite programme offers sales and services training and marketing support, as well as other value-add options.
Despite a tough market, Snadden said the SME sector has held up well, and that a pure indirect sales strategy in the UK has helped. "We do not compete with our partners in any area and this is a reason why we are attractive to them," he claimed.
Snadden said Hewlett-Packard's (HP's) acquisition of Compaq has opened up more business. "It immediately took a choice out of the market for the channel and customers," he said.
But Fujitsu, which set itself the target of becoming a leading computer vendor in Europe by 2003, has struggled to make ground in the UK.
Andy Brown, analyst at IDC, said the company is strong in Germany but has always found the UK market difficult.
"Given HP's and Acer's presence in the UK SME sector, Fujitsu is trying to expand its reseller base to give it greater visibility," he said.