CCD and Metrologie to merge for sharper focus
Divisional director reassures partners after six years of running companies under one brand
Computacenter Distribution (CCD) is today scrapping the Metrologie name and merging both firms under the CCD brand after six years of running the two companies side by side.
CCD, the volume distribution arm of Computacenter, acquired Unix and server integration specialist Metrologie in 1999, after it entered receivership along with its parent company CHS (CRN, 4 November 1999).
In a letter leaked to CRN, CCD outlined the key reasons behind the merger. Speaking to CRN, Mike Rodwell, divisional director of CCD, said: “We have run two businesses separately for a long time. There has been duplication in many areas and customer service has probably suffered as a result. We were two businesses under the same umbrella and we are a very focused organisation from both a reseller and vendor point of view.”
He added that since his appointment three months ago, his main aim was to visit all Metrologie’s customers and ease any merger concerns.
“Not one customer has expressed any concern,” he said. “We will continue to have an enterprise focus: we want a volume and value emphasis on all our accredited accounts.”
Rodwell said the firm is not making any redundancies and is “recruiting like mad”. He added that CCD has created a dedicated SME team and has also launched its own Amazon-style web store, which will be available to all VARs over the next three to six months.
Steve Lockie, managing director of Computer 2000, said: “It makes sense to consolidate at this time and the CCD team has plenty of experience.
“It is always difficult when you merge volume with value; there is always the weakening of the value proposition. We had similar issues with the integration of Azlan; you have to keep the brands and teams separate, but still leverage the back office.”
Alastair Edwards, senior analyst at Canalys, said: “When merging volume and value, there is often a clash of sales cultures and business strategies, but the benefits are that duplication is eliminated and they can leverage some of the joint platforms. In today’s distribution market you can’t afford to have any excess cost.”
>> Further reading:
Computacenter Distribution preparing for aggressive growth strategy