PCR Tech and IT retail, distribution and vendor news
PC vendor Dell has launched its new Design Studio project in Europe, which is part of its strategy to bring its regional market share back up from its current five per cent figure.
The scheme enables consumers to customise the appearance of laptops prior to purchase, and has been initially rolled out in the UK, France and Germany, with further availability across Europe to follow.
The move is part of a fresh retail push across Europe, using the UK as a launch pad. Over the last two years, the company has created a retail presence in 30,000 partner stores worldwide, and has recently inked a deal with Italy’s largest IT retailer, Media World.
"We’re really moving from the UK out," said Phil Bryant, Dell’s vice president and general manager for EMEA, speaking to PCR. "Our strongest relationship a few months ago was with the Dixons group in the UK, but even that wasn’t as deep as it could be, so what we’ve done over the last three or four months is build a closer partnership with them.
"Our relationship is now heavily integrated – Dell is a featured brand in Dixons and PC World. Some of the products that we’ve been displaying were developed with them in mind."
The firm is particularly confident of growth in the UK, where it tends to be stronger than other European regions. "If you look at the last IDC data, we were up around the 18 per cent in the UK. Since then I think our partnerships have deepened. We’re very optimistic about our growth goals and our share goals in the UK because of the partnerships we have," added Bryant.
