Local distributor Sahara Computers is quietly climbing the channel ladder with a selection of exclusive distribution agreements with some of the IT industry`s biggest vendors.
Established in 1990, the company has moved from clone PCs to creating its own brand. According to Selvin Kristnen, Sahara director, corporate division: "Sahara`s key focus at this point is to build an empire, make it a conglomerate, and go from there."
Sahara says it has secured exclusivity rights to distribute products from the world`s largest motherboard manufacturer, Asus, and also has an agreement with Samsung for exclusivity on its range of drives. The Asus agreement includes the high-end graphics brand, GeForce, and an increasing range of Asus` laptops and a personal digital assistant due out later this year.
Sahara has also joined Tarsus as the second distributor of Samsung monitors.
Multimedia peripherals company Creative has appointed Sahara as its official distributor, and Sahara says it is the only facility in Southern Africa with both an original equipment manufacture and distribution agreement with AMD.
"When you have a 'clone`, it is difficult to get your product into a customer`s organisation when he is already using Compaq or HP. We use the same components as the tier-one products. We`re trying to build the same machines, but we will only beat them with service and support," says Kristnen.
Share
