Do distributors play any role in facilitating finance to channel partners?
Ingram (Tech Pacific) started channel financing initiative in 2002. Under this programme, we have enrolled about 100 partners. We have allied with HDFC, ICICI, and UTI to help channels get access to funds whenever they need them, through our recommendations to these banks. The qualification criteria for enrollment include a partner’s credit record, the company financials, business volumes done for Ingram (Rs 2 crore last year), and the years of association with Ingram. Taking a cue from us, other distributors have introduced similar programmes. Do you plan to launch any enhanced features? We want to introduce a new facility for our partners selling to small business customers. We will introduce paperless payment facility. Using Electronic Clearing System (ECS), customers can go online and pay us directly, either by using auto-debit facility or one-time payment option. A portion of the payment will be credited to the partner’s account as commission instantly. We have tied up with HDFC f
