You sometimes hear top performers in the channel complain that business isn’t going so well, but Patrick Steenssens, Senior Vice President Benelux at TD Synnex, says the opposite: “Those who complain don’t have their affairs in order. They haven’t adapted to a world that’s changing at an accelerated pace.”
“The days of easy money are over. That doesn’t mean you can’t earn good money anymore, but you need to respond quickly to changing market conditions. We are living in unusual times, a complete transformation, yet unfortunately a large number of channel players aren’t keeping up,” says Patrick Steenssens. “We’re facing a wave of opportunities, and we need to collaborate more as well, like in the construction sector—look at the Lantis mobility project in Antwerp. To use a popular political expression: we need to step out of our own shadow. It all comes down to trust. Unfortunately, collaboration is not something we excel at in Belgium…”
IT sales through the channel up 5.5%
Patrick Steenssens is exceptionally well-informed and brings a wealth of interesting data. While global IT market revenue growth may be somewhat lower than last year, the sector is still climbing by 7 percent—three times more than the global economy. The good news is that in Europe, three-quarters of IT spending happens through the channel. Anyone who thought the channel was done for, that everything would go directly via the vendor, is clearly mistaken. IT sales through the channel are growing by 5.5 percent this year—more than in the past three years—despite economic instability, pricing changes, and logistical disruptions.
“You see a major shift from cyclical purchases—often renewals like client computing, networking, and servers—to cloud application services (+28%), managed IT services (+13%), and cybersecurity (+10%). The big advantage of services is recurring revenue. The money comes in every month. That’s where we need to go as a channel.” A majority of partners expect that in 2025, more than one-fifth of their revenue will come from recurring income, according to a major survey by analyst group Canalys.
Not fewer but more products
Services and software now account for 84 percent of the channel’s income, led by managed services, software and SaaS, and consulting and professional services. Hardware represents only 16 percent, according to Canalys. The real profit clearly lies in software and SaaS, says one in three respondents. In the top five managed services, we find cybersecurity, support & maintenance, cloud & hosting, and integration & deployment services. That artificial intelligence will play a defining role is beyond doubt.
Anyone who assumed partners would reduce the number of vendors they work with is mistaken. Half of the Canalys respondents say they will actually embrace 50 percent more products. At TD Synnex Benelux they work with 150 vendors, and another 20 are added each year—a number that will grow further, especially with emerging technologies. “We have a vendor touch center in the UK and shared services in Spain focused entirely on new vendors. New players are emerging every day.”
Cisco, Dell and NetApp losing ground
Cloud platforms and their marketplaces are becoming increasingly important for the future, also for the channel. TD Synnex is the only distributor offering AWS, Google, and Microsoft. “Where there’s a lot of honey, there are a lot of bees,” Steenssens jokes. “Cloud platforms are extremely attractive. If you commit to multi-year volumes—say, three years—you often get very substantial discounts.”
He then refers to the ranking of software vendors in the distribution sector. It’s no surprise that Microsoft is the largest, growing another 12 percent in the first quarter. VMware, in fourth place, grew by 50 percent, followed by IBM at 21 percent. Citrix grew 23 percent. Recently, however, Arrow purchased the exclusive distribution rights for Citrix for a significant sum. “It shows how quickly things can change. Even at Microsoft, two-thirds of distributors worldwide have lost their license.” In Europe, in the first half of the year, sales via distribution declined for Cisco (-5%), Dell EMC (-4%), and especially NetApp (-16%).
Is consolidation coming after all?
Exertis Benelux recently threw in the towel—an important player in AV and consumer distribution. Does this disruption signal consolidation in the sector? “Scale and specialisation are becoming crucial. And don’t forget that growth costs a lot of money,” Steenssens explains, who no longer wants to use the word “reseller.” “They are partners.” The Canalys survey also shows that relatively few partners are looking for an acquisition or a buyer. Only 7% are considering a sale; more than 70 percent have no plans at all.
Regionalisation of the supply chain
Patrick Steenssens has been with TD Synnex for 23 years, first with Tech Data until the 2021 merger. He plans to stay another four years. The impressive yet jovial executive oversees 650 employees in the Benelux, representing an astonishing €2.9 billion in revenue. Typical for the channel is that the 5 percent margin isn’t huge, “but on a turnover like that, it certainly adds up.”
He is also responsible for logistical operations in Europe at TD Synnex, where he is steering a major shift following vendors’ new supply chain strategy. They are moving from a global supply chain to a more regional approach. The logistics platform in Europe involves 900 employees. Currently, work is underway in consultation with vendors. The first steps are expected in the first quarter of 2026.
This article first appeared on Channelnews.be
