Being a part of the “Rating of IT Companies” project, the survey was carried out during the period from October 1 to December 31 in 2008. The main idea of the “Best Distributors”
This time during the survey 158 distributor companies were assessed. Traditionally, twenty top companies were included in the “Best Distributors”
It fortuned that the “Best Distributors 2008” survey was conducted during the period when the global financial crisis had begun to affect Russia and seriously correct all spheres of Russian economics.
The country's IT sector suffered as well. At that time all participants of Russian IT market were faced with considerable troubles. It was obvious that the companies had got in trap of loans that always were a part of usual distributor business practice. So Russian distributors were in trouble at that moment.
To make matters worse, in 2008 some distributor companies couldn’t return debts from their partners as the latter ones had no possibility to rid themselves of their own debts in time. Moreover, some of distributors' partners found themselves on the verge of default. Great debtors meant great problems to distributor companies. For instance, Neotorg couldn’t meet its engagement - to pay 20-30 million dollars debt.
Meanwhile, in 2008 the distributor companies began to reduce the amount of new orders and tried to cancel some of the products ordered in advance in anticipation of recession in demand. As a result, there occurred a shortage of some product positions in the fourth quarter of 2008 that ended by resellers' dissatisfaction caused by lack of needed items and necessity to look for them in other places.
Time showed that the distributor companies had been right - there was a great recession in demand in the fourth quarter. Some companies goods turnovers decreased to 50%. Consequently, there were lots of cases of goods glut on the market that lowered companies' profits and led to losses.
At the same time reducing of profit led to internal restructuring and optimization of spending. Some distributor companies were forced to cut business lines, salaries and staff that as a consequence reflected badly on the quality of services offered to resellers.
In 2008 that situation caused concern, because long-term partnership between resellers and distributor companies could be destroyed. As a consequence, it also could lead to considerable changes in the rating of best distributors.
The proverb says: “A friend in need is a friend indeed”. The hardships that distributor companies had been suffering as a result bared them and made their positive and negative qualities look more evident. In this connection a value of the “Best Distributors”
Nevertheless, despite dramatic changes on the market in 2008 the most participants of the previous rating managed to keep their positions or even improve them this time.
Compared to the previous year there were seven new names in the top list of best distributors this time - AK-Cent, Fan, MICS, CPS, AXOFT, Pirit and 3Logic. Pirit managed to return lost in 2007 position. Except that year the distributor always was itself among the best companies. It’s worth to mention that in 2008 Pirit contributed a lot in development of the market with its initiative against goods raid which has become a scourge of Russian business. Such Pirit’s activity has earned the company a great reputation among resellers and also its workmates - other distributor companies.
Success of such companies as AK-Cent and Fun in the rating should be noted. For example, AK-Cent returned in the top list in 2008, last time it was in 2004 when it'd taken 13th place. Moreover, in 2008 the company had been the leader of the intermediate ratings several times. Fan also had appeared in the threesome of top list leaders several times according to intermediate results. Eventually, AK-Cent took 2nd place in the top list whereas Fan got the 4th one. That was a doubtless achievement for both of the distributor companies.
LANIT and Lanck were also in the first quinary of the top list. Compared to 2007 LANIT improved its position having gained six points while Lank moved up from 6th to 5th place.
A company Marvel that had successfully started the year with a business growth rate exceeding 60% in the first half of 2008 then improved its financial results and strengthened its leadership position in the “The Best Distributors”
MONT, Landata, ELKO Group и NetLab also managed to get in the top list of ten best distributors. MONT and Landata considerably improved their results in 2008. Whereas MONT jumped from 14th to 6th position, Landata took 8th place having gained seven points.
There were four companies in 2008 - AK-Cent, Lanck, MONT and OCS - that were really close to the leader position in the top list. But, finally, the position was taken by OCS. Thus the company confirmed its leader status for the fifth time.
Of course, the first place in top list is usually an excellent result. But, what is more important, all twenty companies represented in the “Best Distributors”
In the "Most Frequently Mentioned Companies" rating the largest distributors traditionally occupied the top positions. Like a year ago, Merlion took 1st place. OCS and Marvel were behind it on 2nd and 3rd places correspondingly. LANIT took 4th place and Verysell was on 5th one. Also there were some new distributor companies in the rating - Depo Computers, MICS, Lanck, RRC and Pirit.
More information about the “Best Distributors 2008” on the Russian IT market: http://www.astera.ru/
