I had an interesting conversation the other day with Carmen Pitarra, president of Northeast Print Supplies & Equipment in Pittstown, PA. His company sells office technology, software, and office supplies as well as MPS. Office supplies now make up about 50 percent of his business. During our conversation he made a bold prediction that is food for thought for the office technology dealer community. “I envision 10 years from now office equipment companies merging with office supply companies and vice versa.”
That makes sense to me, but then again I still write for both the office technology and office products dealer audiences. If you’re interested, you’ll find my occasional articles for office products dealers online in Independent Dealer magazine (www.idealercentral.com). Even though I find this strategy viable, I think many office technology dealers are going to be a tough sell. Maybe I’m wrong and Pitarra is right, but I get the impression most office technology dealers are entrenched in their existing businesses and aren’t ready to add hopelessly low-tech items like pencils, pens, file folders, labels, etc. to the mix.
However, I’ll let you decide whether these types of mergers and acquisitions are viable after further elaboration from Pitarra.
“The reason I say that is the office supplies guys are in a quandary—they can’t service equipment and that’s keeping them out of print management. And the office equipment guys don’t have the online ordering tools and the supplies chains like the West Point’s, etc. to put together a reliable print management program with a reliable source to get all these products. If you’ve been in this business for any length of time you know that 99 percent of these guys don’t even have online ordering for a box of toner.”
What do you think? Is this an opportunity that’s knocking or not?
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