Distributors Optimistic About Upcoming Prospects

By Steve Smith On Mar 7 2011 - 6:01am

NEW YORK — With International CES and Super Bowl TV promotions behind them, distributors have taken a fresh look at the first half of the new year and are generally hopeful about sales prospects.

But the CE marketplace has changed. Flat-screen TVs are still popular but challenged from a profit standpoint with lower retail prices across the board taking a toll. Distributors are hoping that IPTV features and renewed marketing plans for 3DTVs, namely that they are the best TVs that you can buy, will help.

Distributors see tablet PCs as a growth category, not only for them but for retailers, to drive traffic and sales volume. The same holds true for smartphones for those distributors — and retailers — that have taken on the category.

The distributors questioned for the TWICE Virtual Roundtable all felt that networked products — whether wired or unwired — should be stocked, sold and assembled by retailers and installers to create not only sales volume but profits, always a tough achievement even during the best of times.

What follows are the opinions of some top distribution executives concerning the first half and a variety of product categories.