Google go-go

machine slows

Is Express delivery investment
v Amazon harming margins?

Xerox sales

sliding again

Services growth stalled in
spite of signings success?

One Wesco

powers forward

Strong US sales from integrated

services and new capital projects

30 Jan'15

WESCO a leading provider of electrical, industrial, and MRO supplies, today announced Q4’14 results...

Newell writes

big numbers

Latin America, hygiene &
commercial in high demand

Amazon attack

accelerates again

Sales growth in business supplies

/services 28%; GP up to 29.5%.

Invests hugely in new FC's/IT

Amazon.com, the world’s #1 etailer maintained its mighty sales momentum in Q4'14 with $89Bn an increase of $15Bn. This Godzilla, stealth attacker has grown nearly 4x to $20Bn in business supplies in 5 years, without independent dealers reacting. Jeff Bezos continued to invest heavily in distribution...

V i s t a p r i n t
ventures forward

Marketing + price increases
drive growth + acquisition

Can C a n o n
check collapse?

Printers, copiers & camera
demand slipping and sliding

Mercenary

Moulton

merciless 

SPOT owner driving Spicers

down City Link road to ruin

SPOT's (aka Spicers/Officeteam) vulture capital owner, toxic terminator Jon Moulton was accused of illegally 'trading when insolvent' during the City Link liquidation hearing, after 2700 employees were fired on Christmas Day. We discuss latest press reports... 

SCA surge in

personal care

Tissues sales boosted
by purchase in China

IP: Printer paper
plunge persists

Flat packaging can't
offset fall. Profits OK.

Apple aces high

business market

Personal productivity tools
outpace same-old Samsung

Apple, the world’s #1 business tech provider, announced blockbuster results for Q1'15 ended 27 Dec'14. According to latest research it now dominates progressive companies’ technology usage soon to be expanded by the IBM connection, ApplePay and AppleWatch..

Yahoo’s Mayer

masks poor core

Alibaba $40Bn stake sale diverts

focus from CEO incompetence

27 Jan’15

Yahoo’s complacent chief Marissa Mayer continued to convolute her declining performance with market pleasing news about Alibaba…

Lexmark levers

MPS mket share

Strong software

growth

offsets printers decline

Lexmark International,surprisingly reported better financial results again in Q4’14 after a long run of downward trends in sales and profits

VOW: Green

Lights the way

UK’s leading OP wholesaler

switches on 400 resellers 

27 Jan’15 (Complete)

VOW UK’s #1 OP wholesaler held its biggest dealer show ever on Friday in Birmingham (UK). The Green Light event was s tremendous success and timely given rival Spicers’demise. We spoke with parent company Evochief Robert Baldrey...

MMMomentum

across the board

Strong sales growth in industrial,

healthcare & safety; but OP slow

27 Jan’15

The mighty 3M today reported record sales and profits in Q4’14 ended 31 Dec’14 with accelerating rates of growth in sales and profitability…

Staples stalled by

competitive fear?

Analysts and industry watchers

misunderstand merger mayhem 

27 Jan'15 (Complete)

There is an overwhelming view expressed in investment analyst circles about the positive effects of the murderous merger between Staples and disintegrating Depot.Sanity says No. Vulture capitalists say Yes! Bring it on!

Mighty Microsoft

higher on Cloud

Commercial strength plus strong

Surface Pro3 offset soft Windows

26 Jan’15

Microsoft reported better than expected results for Q2’15 ended 31 Dec’14. Since CEO Satya Nadellatook over as CEO market capitalization has increased 28%...

PCA paperless

packgng power

Boise acquirer's organic

growth in containerboard

Grainger gains

more OP share

Mobile webstore trade
30%

 biz supplies buys

WW Grainger, the $10Bn in sales, leading North American broadline supplier of FM, maintenance and business supplies today announces Q4’14 financial results to 31 Dec’14.

Hygiene King

K-C FORCE-ful

International boosts

results. 

K-C Pro sales

progress strongly

Kimberly-Clark (K-C)the global personal hygiene brands manufacturer, reported solid Q4’14 results. Continuous improvement processes are working…

Esteem excels in

managed services

Reinvention progress from IT

reseller to productivity provider 

24 Jan'15

We have been campaigning for OP dealers and IT resellers to transform themselves from box shifters to personal productivity services providers. Here is a great case study...

Apple's Couch

calls for change

Personalised teaching tailored

to individual students needs

24 Jan'15 (Complete)

#BETT2015 learning technology show with 800 exhibitors plus the annual BETT Awards was a huge success. Apple's technology chief John Couch was a revelation.

Avnet advances

fast in electronics

Electronics marketing sales gains

offset by slow growth Tech sales

23 Jan’15

Avnet Technology, a $28Bn in sales, global leader in technology distribution and services reported improving sales and profitability in Q2’15 ended 27 Dec’14

Selling OP free,

increases cost,

not productivity

Paper related products raise

customer communication costs

22 Jan'15

Fact: paper-related products demand is down 40% since 2008and will not come back. But, most dealers are in denial with OP sales still over 70%+ of sales mix compared with market demand of <25%. What should they do about it?

The #BETT2015

Google Hangout

Promethean launch Interactive

learning; HP assessment tech 

21 Jan'15

The must-do education technology show #BETT2015opened today at Excel Arena in London. Leading brands Promethean. Ergotron, Google, HP, XMA & Viglen were all launching new tech solutions...

Dixons' Black

Friday fever

UK electronics king enjoyed

roller coaster Christmas trade

21 Jan'15
Black Friday is now a "national institution" and will "last forever", according to the boss of electronic retail giant Dixons Carphone....

Staples to reject

Starboard sting?

Avid activists call for murderous

merger w/disintegrating Depot 

21 Jan'15 (Updated)

Predictably Starboard have followed up its 6% stake in Stapleswith a letter to shareholders urging a merger with Office Depot.Typically, it reasons on $2Bn savings ignoring the train-wreck that competitors like Amazon & WBMasonwould feed off...

Ricoh Leapfrog

into schools... 

Launching 3D Printing

partnership at BETT15

21 Jan'15

Ricoh has teamed up with Leapfrog 3D printers as it looks to take the technology into schools across the country.

IBM: Rometty

under Cloud

Big Blue behind ballgame.

Can Ginni & Meg make it? 

21 Jan'15

IBMcapped a tough year with further declines in sales intech services. Can old tech players like HPand IBM make it in the new agile cloud services world?

The beckoning

beverage market

Refreshment and nutrition

drives increased productivity 

21 Jan'15

We visited most of the Top 30 resellers in the US/UK recently and sales mix has shifted dramatically to breakroom and cafe supplies. This category is now the lead seller for progressives...later today, sorry

Plantronics: new

kit for start-ups

Headset maker develops new

market in face of Jabra attack

20 Jan'15
Plantronics has said its new scheme designed to help startups will be the next big opportunity for its channel.

Hopeless Pursuit

SFO drop case against Autonomy

leaving CEO Whitman wounded 

20 Jan'15

When HPacquired UK big data vendor Autonomy the deal was seen as a massive $11 billion bet on deep CRM software that would pay rich dividends. Instead it has been another embarrassment for CEO Meg Whitman... 

WBMason: That's

#EDUTAINMENT!

3000 teaching professionals

attend 2nd Education Show

20 Jan'15 (Complete)

They were waiting in line for an hour before the doors opened to WBMason's 2nd Annual Education Consumer Show at Foxwoods (CT) yesterday. The 100+ vendors soon became flooded with enthusiasm for their latest products and technology. We highlight the best...

Can glocalization 

outsmart locals?

Amazon/Uber personalized

same-day delivery service

upgrades business supply 

20 Jan'15 (Complete)

There was much written in 2014 about the protectionist de-globalization trend. Too much misunderstanding has been expressed. Starbucks , Amazon and Uber provide more personal, local service than most lazy local dealers !

Intel expects

flat PC outlook

Tech refresh benefit to chip

maker in '14 won't continue 

18 Jan'15

Intel’sQ4'14 sales rose 6% from a year ago. aided by surging sales of server chips, even as demand for PC's appeared to lose steam.

Yahoo: musical

chairs continue

Mayer appoints Flurry chief

Fuloria to head key ad team

18 Jan'15

Rumours have been confirmed that under fire Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayerhas handed over the  company’s important advertising technology and products team to Flurry execs, specifically Prashant Fuloria.

Google reframe

Glass strategy

Nest chief Tony Fadell to lead

next stage of development

17 Jan'15

Google is halting individual sales of its wearable Glass and borrowing a page from Apple’s playbook by developing the next generation of the controversial device out of the limelight that hurt the first version.

Amazon: partner

or opponent?

Local marketplace sellers query

its wholesale/direct motives

16 Jan'15

There are now 2 million resellers inc. thousands of business supply dealers, using Amazon's wholesale service. Understandably, many fear its competitive threat. However, as long as they provide a proactive personalized productivity service there is nothing to fear....

WBMason’s BIG

Education Show

Latest teaching tech: MakerBot,

Interactive Mastervision tables 

16 Jan’15 (Updated)

On Monday, US megadealer WBMason holds its 2nd Annual Educational Consumer Show at Foxwoods (CT) expecting over 3000 teachers, principals and department heads. We caught up with marketing chief Lindsay Picardto preview the big event...

Edu Better you

better you BETT!

40,000 expected in London

to view latest learning tech

16 Jan’15

Every year we look forward to the must-do British Educational Training and Technology Show (BETT). It starts next week 21-24 Jan at Excel Arena, London. This year Apple’seducation chief John Couch is the keynote...later today

Rethink Retail!

Rocky? Receding? Retreat?

Relics must recreate theatre

destination not chore store

16 Jan'15

It's been a rough week so far for retailers as share values plummet, causing speculation of another recession?? The real problem is there‘s too much focus on drab product displays and failure to create a user-friendly shopping destination. This is reflected too in a woeful webstore experience. Users want Shoppertainment!

BOSS: upgrade

t/Business Class

Fastenal's faster

& faster growth

Demand for vending machines

offsets slow fasteners' sales 

15 Jan'15

Fastenal Company, a leading US reseller of MRO supplies, including office supplies, reported accelerating  growth results for Q4’14

Best Buy beaten

back by Amazon

Gloomy outlook: pricing pressure

expected to depress profitability

15 Jan'15
Best Buy’s holiday sales in the U.S. rose 4.1% as the retailer took advantage of shopper enthusiasm for new phones and big screen televisions, a benefit the chain warned it might have to do without in the coming months. Moreover, it lost more ground online v Amazon

Samsung's pricey

Blackberry pick? 

Reports indicate $7Bn+ offer

for relic smartphone maker

15 Jan'15

Samsung Electronics has flatly denied a report that it has approached Blackberryabout a possible acquisition. We dont believe it.

Amazon killed

the Radio Shack

Failure to create mobile webstore

shoppertainment buries last hope

15 Jan'15

Radio Shackshares plummeted more than 30% this morning on news that it could file for bankruptcy protection as soon as next month.

Simon Moate

moves onwards

Respected office2office chief 

leaves Vasanta post merger 

15 Jan'14 (Complete)

Simon Moate,one of the most respected leaders in the business services market, has departed office2office, the leading UK contract stationer/outsourcing group following its acquisition by Vasanta Group last year...

"Please don't

underestimate my

purchasing power 

My supplies spend is $1350pa,
not your $400 stationery rate" 

15 Jan'15

Why do OP dealers continue to underestimate the potential spend of users by 70%? It's probably the main reason driving the complacency epidemic killing their growth prospects. "If you want my business contact me personally" appealed Lucy...

Depot fined $68m

re California fraud

Whistleblower Sherwin's estate to

receive $23m but Depot in denial

Staples split

Sargent role

Starboard stake influence or

just coincidence? 2015 make

or break with Depot merger?

14 Jan'15

Staples board has approved an independent chairman policy. Is this a sign that activist shareholder Starboardis starting to stranglehold with its 'crash and burn' Depotmerger plan?

Showrooms or
stockrooms?

Wholesalers! Broaden business
supplies range to facilitate local
Productivity Services Centres 

14 Jan’15
To stock, or not to stock? This is still the BIG question for OP dealers, when all the profitable evidence in the broadening business supplies market, says: ‘Go stockless’ and partner with wholesalers. We make the case for showrooming productivity services v stocking products, wholesalers permitting...

Depot workers

go on strike...

Disruption at Ex-Guilbert

Distribution Centre in Senlis 

14 Jan'15

We received reports earlier today of a strike at Office Depot'scontract stationery division, at Senlis in France over the firing of 500 workers (20% of the workforce. More details to follow tomorrow

Euroffice losing

light & Power?

Etailer endures disruptive year

of poor support & slow returns

14 Jan'15

UK based etailer Eurofficesuffered supply issues for its office stuff in 2014, whilst trying to expand its Office Power venture and Germany move. We speak with Simon Drakeford...tomorrow

Complete cracks

$100m w/contract

furnisher buy

West/Midwest expansion drive in

integrated productivity services

14 Jan’15 (Updated)

As reported in December, Complete, the US west coast leader in business supplies with offices in Seattle, LA and Wisconsin has increased its presence in the Midwest with a large Wisconsin furniture specialist. We spoke with chief Rick Israel (pic left) about his future plans…

The myth of

MPS success

Just a OP dealer fad or

cannibalizing contest

for dinosaur tech giants? 

14 Jan’15 (Complete)

Managed Print Services (MPS) has been a hot topic for over 6 years now. But OP dealer reps have been slow to step-up and sell professionally to CFO’s. Meanwhile, the top printermakers battle out for a diminishing market...

Amazon: Piranha

or Robin Hood?

Press perceptions match general

market view as rival beast not

as personal wholesale service

Tech spending

trending down

Apps/software demand soars

but, PC’s/devices slowdown

w/HP catching leader Lenovo

13 Jan’15

Gartner has slashed this year's growth forecast for IT spending but pointed to enterprise software as a market set for big things in 2015. Meanwhile IDC reports the PC market in reverse after its temporary 'refresh' respite with HP recovering lost ground...

Jumping Jabra

jabs Plantronics

Headsetmaker aims to grab

#1 market position by 2017

13 Jan’15

Jabra launched an "aggressive" assault on rival Plantronicslast October by offering dealer rebates of up to 6% on competitive deals.

SPOT Better's

terminal Link

Moulton's turnaround, tailspinning

toxic tale, fuels more failures 

13 Jan'15 (Updated & Complete)

The outspoken vulture capitalist Jon Moulton, aka Grinch of Better Capital, owner of failing forces Spicers/OfficeTeam (akaSPOT), Fairline, Jaeger and City Link delivery service is having a disastrous run. 2015 looks even worse...

Scintillating

Synnex soars

Tech services success

plus IBM CRM acquisition

12 Jan’15

SYNNEX Corporation the $14Bn business services wholesaler, today announced its financial results for Q4’14 to 30 Nov’14

Dynamic Dave

detoxing Tesco

New chief’s plans boost

retail giant’s share price 

11 Jan'15

Last Thursday was a day of mixed emotions for Tesco's new CEO Dave Lewis. It's been a stormy beginning dealing with fraud cutting out non core activities...

Personal activity

trackers boost

biz productivity

Wearables wave set for banner

year with Apple Watch launch

11 Jan'15

CES was dominated by personal wearables and new car technologies. Activity trackers dominated 2014 with new wearable categories tipped to grow even faster this year, .

Lagging Logitech

reinventing itself

CEO Darrell's drive to recreate

DeLuca innovation glory years

10 Jan'15

PC accessories Logitech International is taking a leaf from Microsoft's playbook by pivoting from the business that made it famous to focus on products that piggyback on mobile computing popularized by Apple andSamsung.

Samsung sliding

smartphone sales

Apple, Lenovo and Xiaomi's

rapid rise dent mobile progress 

9 Jan'15

Samsung Electronics’sQ4'14 results preview show continued sales and profit declines as Chinese smartphone makers get stronger

HP's Holistic

Protection play

Takes worldwide legal action

against infringing copycats 

9 Jan'15

HPtoday announced a series of worldwide legal actions in its ongoing fight to combat the sale of infringing inkjet cartridges...

Apple app store

sales soar 50%

IOS apps reach 1.2m with

1m extra jobs created

9 Jan'15

Apple reported today that in  the first week of January set a new global record for App Store billings, with customers spending $500,000 apps and in-app purchases. While New Year’s Day 2015 marked the “single biggest day ever in App Store sales history”.

Amazn wholesale

accelerates in '14

Fulfilment service grows by 65%

with 25% transactions via mobile 

9 Jan'15 (Updated)

Amazon last Monday reported its Marketplace (aka Wholesale) resellers doubled sales worldwide in 2014. There are now 2 million resellers that account for over 40% of the total units sold with business supplies its largest category...

Merger surge'14

Merger mania'15

Recession fuelled intermission

over as dealers join the party 

9 Jan'15 (Updated)

Increased M&A activity sparked by the Depot/Max merger took off in 2014 with Staples and WBMason making strategic moves. Now the regional dealers are getting involved. We summarize 2014 activity and discuss 2015 prospects...

Misco missteps.

Massive unrest.

Executive exodus extends after

commission scheme mark down

8 Jan 2015
Key employees at Systemax subsidiary Misco UK are understood to be eyeing the exit after changes to their commission plans were unveiled last night. This follows the departure of senior management late last year...

Top tech take-

aways from CES

Drones, 4K TV's & Budgee

robots controlled by apps

7 Jan'15

At the International Consumer Electronics Show, it's not just about what's in front of you or even on the table below. Sometimes, to see the best CES has to offer, just look up.

Keurig steals 

deal in soda 

Dr.Pepper Snapple addition

to new cold drink system

ousting sad Sodastream 

7 Jan'15

Keurig signed a deal with Dr Pepper Snapple Group to sell capsules that make its sodas in its planned cold-drink machine, giving the maker of coffee brewers two of the top three soda companies 

Bunzl bundling

to become FM/

breakroom king

Adds Californian protection

equipment leader to portfolio

6 Jan'15

Bunzl plc, the international distribution and outsourcing group, today announces that at the end of December it agreed to acquire a safety business in the US with the acquisition being completed at the beginning of January.

Staples Connects

with home offices

Apes Apple with remote control 

apps of light, heat and security

6 Jan'15

Staples, today announced the availability of ambient alerts for its home and office automation platform Connect. The alerts provide audio and visual notifications through compatible devices in the home or office.

Ryan Seacrest 

bets on Typo

Mobile keyboard for fumble

fingered execs on the move

6 Jan'15

TV and radio star Ryan Seacrestwas at the Consumer Electronics Show last night to talk about Typo, the mobile keyboard startup that he co-founded with CEO Laurence Hallier.

Fitbit fitness

Surge ready 

Cool Smartwatch & Charge

activity trackers now shipping

6 Jan'15

Fitbit announced its latest and greatest fitness trackers back in October and the company announced yesterday at CES that the devices are finally shipping...

M o b i l e

M a n i a !

'Browse and buy' shopping 

soars 25% esp. via iPhone 6+

6 Jan'15

Shoppers...consumers and business users particularly, kept a firm grip on their mobiles this Christmas season as they typed, swiped and searched their way to deals over the last two months.

Exec Exodus 2015:

The likely losers?

Poor performers who fool myopic

market analysts, VC's and press

6 Jan'15

The ranks of the corporate cliched, empty rhetoric ramblers, long winded leaders grew in 2014. How many of them will still be in place in Dec'15? Tomorrow

AOPD & Pinnacle

groups on a roll 

Larger contract dealers shift

towards peer partnerships

6 Jan'15 (Updated from 1 Jan)

AOPD the international contract group has added its 83rd member; and Pinnacle Affiliates,3 more larger dealers making 26 members. We spoke with leaders Bud Mundt and Kevin Johnsonand the dealers involved...

The officeless
future beckons

Corporate vacancy rates still
high as workers stay home

Breaking News!

Innovative makes

major acquisition

Personal Productivity Services

specialist races towards $100m

Paperless path

to productivity

m o b i l i z e d

A month-by-month analysis of

a powerful year for progressives   

4 Jan'15 (Updated)

Time to review another positive year for the personal productivity services (PPS) marketplace with progressive service providers setting an example to bigbox players and independent dealers stuck in a traditional stationary mindset. The commodity cliff looms larger…First Half complete, 2nd half completed tomorrow

Wearables

Wonderland

CES 2015: Preview of massive

move to the mobile tech maze 

4 Jan'15

The world's biggest tech show, Consumer Electronics Show (inc. personal productivity tools)  is setting up shop ready for opening on Tuesday 6 Jan. We'll bring you breaking news analysis daily from panels, celebrities and everything you need to know from the show.

Proficiency Profile

Books bullish

for ECi high

Partnerships with wholesalers

& tech firms, plus advances

in web/mobility boost outlook

4 Jan'15

OP industry #1 software house, ECi Solutionshas had a relatively quiet, but busy year since being acquired by Carlyle Group in March this year. We caught with dynamic CEO Ron Books today to review progress and get his view on 2015...Tomorrow, sorry

Small business

confidence soars

Entrepreneurial revolution takes

off fueled by creative start-ups 

3 Jan'15

The Flight to

Freelancing...

How entrepreneural revolution

is disrupting employment stats

& creating supply opportunities 

2 Jan'14

The rapid rise of the freelance economy gets plenty of attention. How many workers fit into this category is hard to measure, as is the relevance of the 5.9% unemployment stat. We point the way for PPS providers to respond to this huge opportunity…

AMZNIFICATION

Advance Plan'15

Bezos'94 Vision: 'Everything store,

Everyday next hr reaches reality

2 Jan'15

The latest plans revealed today by Amazon, demonstrate how the #1 etailer will build on its personalised local wholesaling service; and expose perhaps its #1 vulnerability: private label?

1984-94 v 2014 compared

Top Resellers Leaderboard

Power shifting

to Progressives

Leaders, rising stars, drop-outs,

& newcomers. 2020 tips for top

The bigbox share of the US-UK markets tumbled again in 2014. The messily merged Office Depot and static Staples have now lost an estimated $12Bn in sales over the past 7 years. Progressive independent resellers and mass etailers viz. Amazoncontinued to gain market share...

Eaton merger

tops $40m sales

Top upstate NY dealer

acquires Integrity Office

2 Jan'15

Eaton Office Supply confirmed the acquisition of local Buffalo office dealer Integrity Office with effect from today. We speak with CEO Bruce Eaton...

Staples steal deal: 

$1/bx copy paper

Desperate destination drivers to

increase store holiday traffic 

1 Jan'15
Staplesis taking advantage of the turmoil caused by AP&P'sdumping of copy paper, to stimulate holiday shoppers to visit its superstores with 95%+ discounts on sale prices!

Paper dumping

upsets US market

US papermakers’ weak defence

causes bigboxes to lower pricing

3 Jan'15 (Updated)

Market turmoil! Our inside sources report that Indonesian papermaker APP has dumped huge volumes of copy paper into the US upsetting leading local papermakers. Their defensive reaction has caused them to counter-attack and dump into International markets