Ingram Micro to almost double UK credit availability

Distributor plans to have £150m available through its CreditBuilder scheme by this time next year

Distributor Ingram Micro is planning to almost double the credit available to UK resellers over the next year through its CreditBuilder programme.

Under the scheme, which launched in 2008, qualifying resellers can build a credit facility of up to £100,000 over a 12-month period. They must utilise the facility to enable a regular staged increase in the limit, and pay by direct debit.

The broadliner revealed last June that limits available through the programme had risen dramatically to £30m, but this has now hiked to £80m.

Over the next 12 months, Ingram plans to virtually double this to £150m, UK managing director Matt Sanderson (pictured) confirmed.

"At the same time, we expect to introduce CreditBuilder to an additional 900 customers who have not yet taken advantage of the offering and could see an immediate financial benefit for their business," he added.

Ingram launched CreditBuilder in response to the growing problem of credit insurance withdrawal in the market.

"Once again we are offering more monthly credit in the SMB segment, and bringing the potential for short-term growth and long-term development to even more resellers," Sanderson said.

"No one is doing more than Ingram Micro to support the needs of SMB resellers in the market today."

Talking to ChannelWeb, Julian Thompson, senior sales director at Ingram Micro, said at any one time, up to 75 per cent of the credit available through CreditBuilder will be utilised.

"We often hear from resellers that have had credit reductions, or more commonly have not had their credit limits increased. We haven't seen some distributors being flexible enough and the success of [CreditBuilder] is its flexibility."

"As more and more people constrict their ability to lend, we wanted to react to the market."

Dave Stevinson, sales director at VIP Computers, claimed his firm and the other top seven distributors are dishing out more unsecured credit than ever, to help SMB dealers prosper.

"This is a macro-trend," he said. "The Bank of England has given the banks £80bn to give away and Ingram is now doing its own version. The distributors' raison d'être is to provide credit and Ingram Micro is doing its job well."