ADVERTORIAL
www.comms-dealer.com WESTCON & HP CHANGE TH CONVERGENCE DISTRIBUTOR SET FOR MAJOR CHANNEL CAMPAIGN TO DRIVE GLOBAL BRAND
In a strategic masterstroke Westcon Group has transitioned the distribution of HP’s data and networking portfolio from its Comstor division to the Westcon Convergence business unit, enabling resellers to take the strident HP brand to market as part of a total converged solution with the full backing of a single dedicated support infrastructure. The move catches the wave of HP’s growing status as a networking powerhouse that has irreversibly changed the dynamics of the worldwide networking market.
acquired 3Com for $2.7 billion in a move that turned the networking market on its head. The acquisition also turned the heads of influential industry analysts who say that the impact of the deal has been dramatic. “The new HP networking organisation represents a major force in enterprise networking and completely changes the market landscape and competitive dynamics,” observed a leading Gartner analyst. “When you combine the respective shares of the HP, 3Com and H3C brands from 4Q09 you see a dramatically
H Did you know...
HP Networking continues to make significant progress with positive year-on-year growth. The calendar year Q2 2010 market share from Canalys positions HP UK at number two in managed port shipments with 21 per cent market share, reflecting an increase from 18 per cent in Q1 2010 and from 19 per cent Q2 2009.
P pulled off a unique triumph in April this year when it
different market than we have experienced for many years.”
Apart from ushering in a period of disruptive change to a topsy turvy networking world the 3Com acquisition was also pivotal in accelerating the pace of HP’s converged infrastructure strategy. The deal boosted HP’s ethernet switching portfolio, added routing solutions and significantly strengthened the company’s position in China via its H3C offerings. In strident mood HP is now aiming to change the rules of networking in the UK with a full portfolio of high performance standards-based products, solutions and services, and by incorporating HP into its converged solutions portfolio Westcon Convergence places an unprecedented opportunity in the hands of resellers.
The significance of HP’s transition into the Westcon Convergence fold cannot be over stated. It signals the key role that the distributor will play in developing HP’s UK business, and offers resellers fresh opportunities for growth through multi- vendor sales across several
channels. Apart from being a neat fit with existing vendors in the Westcon Convergence product portfolio, the high profile HP name is certain to make big inroads into the distributor’s target markets where brand familiarity with end users strikes a welcome chord.
Brand leader “HP is a brand leader that our customers are demanding, and it helps our partners provide a complete converged solution,” said Tim Brooks, General Manager at Westcon Convergence. “Resellers whose core business is voice rather than data networking are interested in the strength of the HP brand, which is compelling for their end user customers, meaning that resellers can focus on the voice and applications element of the sale. Moving HP into Westcon Convergence enables us to deliver a more holistic solution to our resellers, and we are in a better position to deliver additional benefits such as joint marketing initiatives.”
As a value-based distributor, marketing support is at the core of
Tim Brooks: “Moving HP into Westcon Convergence enables us to deliver a more holistic solution to our resellers”
Westcon Convergence’s proposition, not just standard marketing, but a mix of consultancy and partnership development that provides fertile ground for bringing new products and solutions to market. “We genuinely try to understand our customers’ business objectives and work with them to create joint plans that feed into their ambitions,” added Brooks. “The relationships we build with our customers are strategic rather than transactional. This puts us in a very good position to bring in complementary products such as HP. The advantage for the channel is that Westcon Convergence will be able to look at solution- based sales with all of the security and converged infrastructure components.”
Westcon Convergence has set out a roadmap for resellers to help them develop the HP networking opportunity, bolstering the channel with a pool of HP
technical expertise, support programmes, increased inventory, a dedicated and autonomous sales team, an in-house marketing team, pre-sales, certified post- sales training, and for new resellers looking to invest in HP a fasttrack onboarding programme that provides guidance, free training and lead generation. “To date we have had significant interest from our customers who can clearly see an opportunity,” noted Brooks.
Robust solutions HP’s networking solutions are now more robust than ever before following the acquisition of 3Com, with its broad product line including high end enterprise networking solutions, routing capacity and TippingPoint security products and research capabilities. Coupled with HP’s core strengths in the LAN edge (Ethernet switching and Wireless LAN) with its ProCurve solutions, today’s HP networking portfolio is a comprehensive
To realise the HP opportunity call Huw Parry on 01285 627 216 or email:
huw.parry@
westcon.com 40 COMMS DEALER OCTOBER 2010
www.comms-dealer.com
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