Vendor appoints distributor to sell used and refurbished goods to channel

IBM Business Partners could soon compete on equal terms with refurbishment brokers following Big Blue’s appointment of a distributor to sell used and refurbished i-Series products to its channel partners.

GCH Distribution, part of the Global Computer Holdings Group, has been appointed by IBM as a certified i-Series used fulfilment partner in a year-long pilot.

Mark Owens, business development manager of IBM’s global asset recovery services, told CRN: “The pilot went live on 1 July and it basically gives us a new channel for used IBM products. We’ve always sold used products, but one problem we’ve had is being able to respond quickly. If the pilot goes well we will look to expand it to other product ranges and possibly to other countries.”

Under the pilot, IBM resellers can buy up to an order level of £10,000 through GCH.

Rod Haddrell, a director of GCH, told CRN: “IBM has been losing out on business in the mid-range market to brokers selling used products. If you look at why customers buy used products, it’s because of the price and availability. Sometimes customers need a product the next day and IBM can’t always meet those needs. We are able to provide IBM products, but at the price and availability that IBM sometimes can’t offer.”

Kevin Drew, managing director of IBM VAR Triangle, said: “As one of IBM’s leading i-Series partners, it’s strange that we haven’t been alerted about this. I have been suggesting to IBM that they do this for a long time.

“It’s great news though because it will allow us to compete almost on equal terms with the brokers. It will also help us to keep customers, because once you lose a customer to a broker you can never get them back.”