“Smart” resellers are taking a hybrid, persona-based approach to selling new and used devices as demand for the latter continues to grow.
That’s according to InnoVent UK, which is aiming to take the channel by storm with a rental/re-rental model enabling resellers to lease both new and refurbished PCs.
According to recent research from Omdia, 83% of customers have altered their hardware refresh plans in direct response to ongoing supply and pricing disruptions.
Of these, 14% are “trading down” – ie plumping for cheaper configurations or entering the refurbished market, Omdia claimed.
“It’s not a binary choice”
However, resellers too often still view new-versus-refurbished as a “binary” conversation, InnoVent Head of Sales Martin Cadby told IT Channel Oxygen.
The leasing specialist is helping resellers take a more holistic approach via its rental/re-rental model.
“The very smart ones we’re working with are looking at a hybrid model, rather than completely abandoning new equipment,” Cadby said.
“This persona-based approach is being driven by end users, but I don’t think channel partners are fully spotting the opportunity – they still think it’s a binary choice of either new or refurbished.
“That’s where we’re different.”
Under its rental/re-rental model, InnoVent’s resellers can help customers “mix and match” new and refurbished devices and pay for them all on a subscription basis, Cadby explained.
Not every role needs the same spec of device, Cadby emphasised.
“A refurbished device can come in at 60% less than a brand-new equivalent – so does every role really need the same spec? A managing partner running complex modelling might justify the latest kit. Other roles may not,” he said.
“That’s powerful”
InnoVent generates around 60% of its £16m annual revenues from channel partners, often championing mid-sized resellers that struggle to win against the market giants on transactional deals, Cadby said.
This is where InnoVent’s rental/re-rental model comes into its own, he claimed.
InnoVent and the channel partner have a shared objective of managing the device and driving new sales, Cadby said.
“We’ll drive that refresh opportunity in two, three or four years, because – unlike our competition – we’re motivated to do that,” he said.
“We’re not only thinking about this deal; we’re thinking about another deal here and another one there.
“That’s how a channel partner grows.
“Second life combined with rental/re-rental is different; that’s powerful.”
“The £1,000 corporate laptop has died”
The European PC market is entering a “new phase” in which affordability is becoming the biggest constraint on demand, market watcher CONTEXT warned this month.
“For the channel, the opportunity is increasingly about helping customers prioritise where refreshes are essential, where devices can remain in service for longer and where investment in newer, more capable systems makes commercial sense,” stated Marie-Christine Pygott, Senior Analyst at CONTEXT.
Depending on which vendor you talk to, the memory crunch could last until at least late 2027 or 2028, Cadby agreed.
This means higher prices are here to stay, he counselled.
“The £1,000 corporate laptop has died,” Cadby said.
He urged resellers to move beyond taking a “transactional, band-aid” approach to selling refurbished PCs, however.
“The smart end users are looking at this hybrid persona model, and the very smart channel partners are looking at how they fulfil this,” Cadby concluded.
This article was produced in association with InnoVent UK and is classified as partner content. What is partner content? See more here.
