《TAIPEI TIMES 焦點》Acer signs distributors to boost sales

FIGHTING TALK: Tony Huang announced contracts with distributors Synnex Technology and Weblink International as part of ‘an aggressive sales strategy’

By Helen Ku / Staff reporter

請繼續往下閱讀...

Acer Inc （宏碁） yesterday said it expects third-quarter sales in Taiwan to grow 40 percent sequentially and 10 percent from a year ago, after signing a one-year contract with local wholesaling distribution agents Synnex Technology International Corp （聯強） and Weblink International Inc （展碁）.

The world’s fourth-largest PC vendor said that aside from broadening its domestic sales channels, seasonal factors and replacement demand for PCs would support growth in the current quarter.

“As the PC market gets more mature, adopting an aggressive sales strategy is necessary for each player, including Acer,” Tony Huang （黃鐘鋒）, president of Acer’s Greater China regional operations, said at a press conference.

Huang said that Synnex and Weblink on Tuesday began selling Acer products, including desktops, laptops, tablets, smartphones, monitors and servers.

The two firms, which have more than 5,000 stores across the country, will also help provide after-sales service, Huang said.

With the addition of Synnex and Weblink, the number of Acer’s local sales network has increased to more than 15,000, including the company’s existing 10,000 retailers that run both physical and online stores, he added.

Huang declined to disclose the actual amount of sales Acer generated from Taiwan last quarter or the third quarter of last year, but he said that domestic sales accounted for only about 2 percent of Acer’s global sales.

In the first quarter, the company’s consolidated sales fell to a seven-year low of NT$76.72 billion （US$2.57 billion）. Cumulative sales during the first five months of the year declined 15.54 percent to NT$121.53 billion from a year ago, company data showed.

“The ICT [information and communication technology] industry has become very transparent and moves at a super fast pace nowadays, and in this tense environment, companies like Acer needs to build a broad range of sales channels to meet consumers’ needs,” Synnex general manager David Tu （杜書全） said.

“Acer’s collaboration with Synnex and Weblink will create a win-win situation for not just the companies but also consumers and retailers,” Weblink general manager Lin Chia-chang （林佳璋） said at the conference.

Founded in 1988 and based in Taipei, Synnex distributes more than 30,000 items of electronic devices for 270 tech brands in 32 countries and areas, including Taiwan, China, Hong Kong, Australia and Indonesia.

Weblink, established in 1997 and also headquartered in Taipei, is the nation’s largest distributor of PC software for brands such as Microsoft Corp and Adobe Systems Inc.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES