At its European Summit, the Global Technology DistributIon Council (GTDC) CEO Tim Curran described current opportunities as “unprecedented in scope and complexity, especially considering the vast range of innovations flooding the marketplace.” he reported a high level of new signings, and said that the old model of distribution had been replaced by services.
He explained that more than 600 new vendor partners entered distribution agreements with GTDC members over the past 24 months. “The demand for comprehensive multivendor solutions has never been greater,” Curran pointed out. “That’s always been a distribution hallmark, and it’s a value proposition we see becoming even stronger in the digital era. Everyone is focused on transformation, and technology distributors are playing a central role in the equation – helping partners grow in all of today’s hottest markets. I’ve never seen a more exciting and dynamic time in the history of distribution.”
The European market also appears to be gaining momentum, according to the GTDC, who cited strong distribution sales-out data for the first few months of the year, averaging more than €1 billion in weekly revenue year to date – with most countries now experiencing year-over-year growth. Another key point pertains to the extensive range of new services GTDC members are introducing, as illustrated on the organization’s website at www.gtdc.org/distribution-as-a-service/. Distributors now support solution providers and vendors across the entire technology lifecycle, from launch and growth phases through maturity and refresh.
“Value-added services now define technology distributors – not pick, pack and ship,” Tim Curran said, noting that distributors are gaining ground in all market segments, including the cloud, projected to surpass €34 billion in distribution sales by 2020.
“We’re very encouraged by the trends we’re seeing this year,” commented Peter van den Berg (pictured), GTDC general manager of EMEA and APAC. “The distribution industry grew in Europe across all major markets in the first quarter, and we see that upward track continuing into the current quarter. Vendor partners are also very enthused about their prospects through distribution – the broader reach, efficiencies and unique support distributors now deliver.”
