SMe & CONSUMeR NeWS
Midwich buys Ascom appoints
SMC sets up new
Owl Visual wireless partners
Spanish reseller level
UNITeD KINGDOM
SPAIN SPAIN
DISTRIBUTOR Midwich has bought the business ASCOM Wireless Solutions has appointed GLOBAL hardware provider SMC Networks has
and certain assets of Owl Visual Systems, an partners to meet demand for on-site wireless added a new level to its accreditation scheme
established UK distributor of high-end projectors, communication. Distributor Noanet, plus in Spain in an attempt to increase its number
large format displays and associated control agreements with Elmeg Spain, BC Sistemas and of partners. The Gold Premium level has been
electronics. Advanced Business Telecom will focus on vertical added to the Platinum, Gold and Silver levels, and
Owl will operate as a standalone division of specific applications and opportunities. becomes the second level below Platinum. All
Midwich. Formed in 1990, Owl is based in East Mike McDaid, International Sales Director, the members that had been in Gold will now be
Sussex in the UK with annual sales around £15m comments: “We are seeing our DECT, IP-DECT and moved to the new Gold Premium category, with
(€19.8m) and 20 staff. Owl’s customer base is WiFi solutions being integrated into customers’ the guarantee that none of the benefits from being
predominantly commercial Audio Visual resellers, existing business processes. Our messaging and in Gold will be lost.
integrators and event management companies, applications truly can add significant value to the Manuel García Rincón, Certified Channel
many of whom address the AV Leisure market. customer and our channel partners have already Manager and Post Sales Technical Manager of SMC
This acquisition enhances Midwich’s reach identified with this, hence the increased interest in Networks Iberia, feels the changes will help attract
in to the Audio Visual reseller channel and is becoming an Ascom partner.” resellers who couldn’t meet the previous criteria.
complementary to the existing activities of Fritz Mumenthaler, CEO of Ascom Wireless “We have partners in Gold who didn’t reach €3,000
both Midwich sister companies True Colours division, adds: “I believe we will see significant so we needed a figure like €1,500. This way we can
Distribution, a distributor of technical AV solutions, growth from the Spanish market and these reach a lot more customers, and allow resellers
and InVision UK, a distributor of home technology appointments are in line with our group strategy to who are buying things in big quantities that didn’t
products for custom installers. grow our global indirect business.” reach €3,000.”
www.midwich.com www.ascom.com/ws New members of the silver levels will benefit
New Digitex boss “aware of the competition”
from discounts and marketing. They will also have
access to the pre-sale and post-sale features and
processes and the Pilot Plan that the other three groups currently
SPAIN
a few years have. In the pre-sale section they will receive free
RAFAEL Tripero has joined Spanish outsourcing ago companies help in creating projects.
specialist Digitex as its new Corporate General started to form “Customers don’t always know how to install
Director, and in his new role intends to rise to more. There products. We have engineers supporting 35
the challenge of developing the outsourcer in have been some partners and we help them to decide which device
what is already a competitive market. emergences of fits best to install.”
“My main target is to help the organisation big companies in In the post-sale section the 35 partners can be
achieve new things on a global scale,” he says. last two years and helped through the three levels: the call centre,
“I am part of a company that is interested this will continue professional support level and the use of project
in one country of the processes of the in the future.” managers. All but the latter is free. The Pilot-
comings and goings of organisational unit. Our “Big players Projects allows its final customers free access to a
customers are large corporations and large are buying other product before they decide whether to buy it.
Spanish corporations in the health and telecoms companies who have niche customers and service. SMC Networks in Spain currently has two
industry, and those corporations in the last year The size is becoming important. Of course in Platinum Partners, 35 Gold Premium partners, 700
have had huge expenditure outside of Spain. The the European market there are a lot of smaller Silver partners and no gold partners, but Rincón is
big challenge is to work with them in the areas we companies with the types of service they can confident that will rise.
are competing.” provide, but large businesses will soon be able to “We would like in the future to have more or
Spain is currently the only country that deal with the most difficult customers. I believe less seven Platinum Partners, 50 Gold Premium
Digitex is involved in Europe, and Tripero does this trend will continue with the mergence of Partners and 100 Gold Partners. We would like to
not intend to change that anytime soon. “If there bigger countries for Australia and India. They are do much better in Silver but we have no fixed
are opportunities we will look into them but for now hard players.” figure.”
www.SMC.com
the moment we are focused in Spain. We are
www.digitex.es
OUR ANALYSIS
interested in the EU market but we have to help
OUR ANALYSIS
our partners and we are focused on Spain. We have The common adage is that it’s seven times cheaper
nine production centres and we want to cover the There is no doubt that outsourcing specialists are to keep an existing customer than to attract a
nationwide possibilities.” in a competitive market. Tripero talks a good game new one, but this new system could be very good
Tripero admits there have been changes in the and is obviously aware of what his competitors business for SMC. By keeping the original structure,
outsourcing industry, particularly regarding the are up to. By focusing on developing their Spanish and only tweaking it slightly to include more
competitiveness of the industry, including from section, as well as their central America sector, reseller partners, it has the capability of reaching
overseas. “Customers are shopping for complex Digitex may well continue to thrive. its targets.
29 feb 2008
9
It0804 - 8-11_SME_news.indd 9 27/02/2008 11:01:22
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32