Ideal Hardware Plc, the New Malden, Surrey computer storage device distributer with its own satellite channel, has announced another comfortable rise in its interim figures with pre-tax profits and turnover up 25% and 33% respectively, in line with City expectations. Simon Barker, finance director, ruled out any future aquisitions, preferring to concentrate on maintaining current market share, hoping to grow in line with a market he estimated to be expanding at a rate of 25% every six months. Future direction will focus on high level and low-end high volume goods for personal computer market, but in the face of confusion over AT&T Corp’s recent shake up, it appears to be hedging its bets by talking to a number of other manufacturers. The company strategy is based on extending its commission-only sales team to an estimated 68 from 48 by July 1996. Unusually for a distributor, Ideal Hardware’s financial position is further strengthened by healthy cash flow and no gearing. Ideal has been digging deep into the corporate coffers to fund a high-profile marketing strategy, aimed at informing and educating its customers via a host of multimedia products. Channel Vision, a weekly 30-minute television programme about Ideal products is transmitted to the company’s top 510 resellers. Alongside this a quarterly glossy magazine, somewhat glibly termed a news sheet, containing product information and features on subjects as diverse as technology’s impact upon our religious and spiritual lives. With an interactive CD-ROM providing 35,000 pages of information and video demonstrations to complete the marketing package, Ideal Is trying hard to create a feelgood factor and keep its customers happy – the company even supplies the satellite dish and decoder to dealers free of charge. The interim dividend was up 24% at 3.4p.
