Sony steps up its corporate drive

Programme is doing well, vendor has claimed

David Spratt: Aspirations to recruit enough partners while maintaining prestige

Laptop vendor Sony has claimed its corporate assault is on track after signing 40 resellers to its new business partner programme in the first three months.

The vendor launched the programme, along with its first Vaio ranges for the corporate market, in July (Channelweb, 16 July).

It has just added to that with the TT-Series, a high-end, ultra-mobile laptop aimed at business people on the move.

David Spratt, SME channel sales manager at Sony UK, said the firm has signed up 30 resellers with which it already worked and 10 new partners.

“Our aspiration was to recruit 60 VARs to give us a balance between having enough partners and maintaining the prestige of the accreditation,” he said. “We do not feel it is a race to recruit them.”

The channel update came as Sony confirmed Vaio category sales manager, Mick Duffy, has left the vendor as part of a reorganisation.

But Spratt vowed to step up Sony’s corporate push.

“The feedback suggests we are doing the right thing and that there is an opportunity for another notebook vendor to step forward,” he said.

Andrew Henderson, commercial director at Sony partner Lanway, praised the vendor for taking a more flexible approach to special bid pricing than more established rivals such as HP or Dell.

“The product line is something mobile professionals would love to own as it has the wow factor. It will not give us volume sales, but it will give us profits,” he added.

Loay Lawrence, commercial director of Sony partner Vohkus, said: “Sony has done its homework in the past year to 18 months and has improved its methodology for working with the channel. We see it growing stronger and stronger.”

Nicolas Barendson, Vaio business unit head, said in a statement: “Sony Vaio can confirm that Mick Duffy, former category sales manager at Sony Vaio, has left Sony. Mike left Sony following an internal reorganisation of roles within the company. Sony Vaio wishes Mick all the best for the future.”