Computer & Office Equipment Distributors
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Industry Structure, How Firms Opertate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Quarterly Insight, Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 7,900 computer and office equipment distributors in the US serve as middlemen between manufacturers and retailers/resellers and end-users. Major revenue categories include computers, computer peripheral devices, office equipment, and computer software. Office equipment includes copiers, point-of-sale terminals (POS), automated teller machines (ATMs), cash registers, mailing machines and check handling machines. Companies may also provide services, such as repair, maintenance, technical support, systems assembly, systems integration, and training.
Rapidly Changing Technology
The IT arena is characterized by rapid change in technology and evolving industry standards and product specification requirements.
Price-Based Competition
Intense price-based competition in the information technology products and services market creates consistent pressure on margins.
Industry size & Structure
The average computer and computer peripheral distributor operates out of 1-2 locations, employs about 39 workers, and generates about $48 million annually. The average office equipment distributor operates out of 1-4 locations, employs about 33-34 workers, and generates about $17 million annually.
- The computer and office equipment distribution industry consists of about 7,900 firms that employ about 298,600 workers and generate about $314 billion annually.
- Computer and computer peripheral distributors account for 72% of firms and 88% of industry revenue.
- The industry is concentrated; the top 50 computer and computer peripheral distributors account for about 76% of category revenue and the top 50 office equipment distributors account for about 77% of category revenue.
- Large companies, which include Ingram Micro, Tech Data, and SYNNEX, may have international operations. Computer and office equipment manufacturers may have distribution operations.
Industry Forecast
Computer & Office Equipment Distributors Industry Growth
Coronavirus Update
May 13, 2022 - Semiconductor Shortage may Last Until 2024
- Availability of computer and office equipment may be affected by the ongoing semiconductor shortage. Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger cautioned in early May that the semiconductor shortage will last until 2024. Pandemic-related lockdown measures in key Asian manufacturing centers are causing bottlenecks in the supply chain. The US leads the world in developing and selling semiconductors, but manufacturing has shifted to Asia. Taiwan and Korea account for 83% of global processor chip production and 70% of memory chip output, according to the Semiconductor Industry Association.
- China’s manufacturing output decreased at the fastest pace in two years in March due in large part to new COVID-19 outbreaks and lockdowns. The Caixin/Markit purchasing managers’ index (PMI) was 48.1 in March, down from 50.4 in February. A reading below 50 suggests output is contracting rather than expanding. January’s figure was the weakest since February 2020, when blanket restrictions were in force during the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic. The official PMI produced by the Chinese government showed the swiftest contraction in activity since October 2021. China is experiencing its worst COVID-19 outbreaks since the pandemic began.
- Commercial bankruptcy filings decreased 4% month over month in April after increasing 26% month over month in March, according to Epiq Bankruptcy Solutions. Commercial bankruptcies decreased 5.4% month over month in February, and 11.2% month over month in January. Commercial bankruptcies were down 16% year over year in April. Small business bankruptcy filings known as subchapter V cases, a new type of filing that went into effect in February 2020 under the Small Business Reorganization Act, decreased 40% month over month in April after hitting record numbers in March.
- Wholesale sales of computer and peripheral equipment were unchanged month over month on an adjusted basis but increased 20% year over year on an unadjusted basis in March.
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