PRESS
RELEASES
NAGASA STUDY DETAILS SATISFACTION WITH DEALER CHANNEL
Washington, DC, January 1997 - NAGASA - the North American Graphic Arts Suppliers Association - has announced the immediate availability of a comprehensive study of manufacturers and their relationships with North American graphic communications dealers. The studyóthe fifth in an ongoing statistical series documenting the distribution channelówas completed in late 1996 by Mason Consulting Inc. The study contains detailed information regarding the sale of graphic arts products through dealers and includes data from 92 manufacturers. Of these, 45 were manufacturers of consumable products; 21 were suppliers of prepress equipment, computers and software; and 26 were pressroom, bindery, and mechanical prepress equipment manufacturers. The responding manufacturers represented nearly 60 percent of the NAGASA manufacturer membership at the time the survey was conducted.
Virtually all of the responding manufacturers indicated they sell through graphic arts dealers. Some 55 percent sell through graphic arts distributors, but only 25 percent sell through VARs. Overall, the respondents indicated that nearly 67 percent of their total North American sales volume passes through dealers or VARs. Manufacturers expect the number of graphic arts dealers to decline by more than 30 percent by the year 2000.
The survey deals extensively with manufacturers' confidence in the ability of dealers to support digital technology, as well as the complexities of dealer-manufacturer relationships. Overall, manufacturers expressed the belief that printers and trade shops would rather buy from dealers than from manufacturers directly. Prepress manufacturers expressed the greatest satisfaction with their dealers. The report contains detailed responses, categorized according to the various supplier categories, and includes verbatim narrative comments from the manufacturers.
In announcing the study, NAGASA president and CEO David J. Steinhardt commented: "This benchmark study is the first in the industry exploring from the manufacturers' viewpoint the relationship between manufacturers and the dealers they rely upon to move their products. In releasing this study, NAGASA expects to strengthen the ties between dealers and manufacturers, to the benefit of the entire industry."
The study is available from NAGASA at 202-328-8441. The study is priced at $425 for members and $745 for nonmembers.
NAGASA - the North American Graphic Arts Suppliers Association - is the world's largest trade association of dealers, value added resellers, systems integrators, manufacturers and distributors serving the graphic arts, imaging and publishing industries. NAGASA members sell more than $4 billion of equipment, supplies, systems, software, paper and service annually. NAGASA is dedicated to strengthening distribution channel alliances, streamlining costs and operations, and improving the business performance of its more than 350 members. NAGASA: The Distribution Association for Printing and Imaging Technologies.