It’s been awhile since we reported triple-digit growth rates in the CE biz.
But D&H Distributing, the North American IT and CE distributor, absolutely killed it during its past fiscal year (ended April 30), thanks to its early stake in a slew of next-gen product categories.
Leading the charge was connected home solutions, where the distributor enjoyed a whopping 121 percent increase (see chart, below).
Also entering three-digit-growth territory was 3D printing, up more than 100 percent.
Another pair of power businesses was health and wellness, ahead 78 percent, and wearables, up 72 percent year over year.
The Harrisburg, Pa.-based business attributes its strong showing in the new-tech categories to “proactive in demand generation, training, and customer engagement.”
D&H’s home entertainment dealers have shared in the glad tidings, with customers’ businesses up nearly 17 percent on average, the distributor reported.
Legacy cross-over categories like desktops, monitors and notebook computers also fared well with double-digit gains, as did more recent D&H additions like housewares and outdoor products.
The company said investments it made last spring in “enhanced engagement opportunities” paid off despite ongoing challenges in retail markets. Those efforts included involving its customer base in providing feedback and best practices insights, especially during its trade events.
“Last year D&H dealers found themselves positioned to take advantage of new areas of growth, including spaces such as connected-home products and health and fitness,” noted co-president Dan Schwab. “D&H wanted to take a more proactive role in guiding those customers, engaging them during our trade events and utilizing feedback to deliver the most relevant products and services to support that potential growth.”
He added: “We set the groundwork to deliver this in the past fiscal year, and will continue to build value through comprehensive support in fiscal year 2017.”
Now in its 98th year, D&H maintains five distribution centers in the U.S. and Canada, including Atlanta, Chicago, Harrisburg, Fresno, Calif., and Brampton, Ontario. For more information, visit DandH.com.
