Does Anixter Sell Direct To End Users? YES

JH
John Honovich
Feb 13, 2014
IPVM

Anixter is clueless at marketing and video surveillance (see: Debunking Anixter's IP Video Advantages and Anixter, Citing Axis, Sets Industry Back Years.)

But when faced with a staged Q&A from a trade magazine, you would think they would be better able to handle questions.

Alas, no.

From an Anixter / SSI interview:

"Does your company ever sell direct to end users? Why or why not? How much of an issue is there with manufacturers circumventing the distribution channel?

Powers: Anixter is committed to selling security products through security integrators. Anixter supports many manufacturers that sell both through distributors and directly to the security integrator. Increasingly, traditional security manufacturers have recognized the value of selling their products through the distribution channel."

This is a classic non-denial denial. Who needs to do that in a fluff piece? Just tell the 'editor', don't run that question and don't answer it. Even worse, these things are typically done by email so it's not like he was ambushed.

Anixter is famous in the industry for selling direct to end users and as noted in our Distributors Dealing Direct to End Users report. And if you think integrators are angry with Amazon and online cctv etailers selling direct, my God, Anixter doing this is 10x more of a threat to integrators.

Summary

Members overwhelmingly agree that Anixter repeatedly sells surveillance equipment direct to end users. There are key questions that remain about the practice, including:

  • How often do they do so? Obviously they do not sell to every end user but it is not clear which end users they sell direct to.
  • What type of pricing / discounts do they offer? Some offer experiences of high Anixter pricing, others offer lower than dealer pricing.
  • How does it vary over time and by office? Members note that Anixter's approach may fluctuate.
  • What drives them to sell direct? Some maintain that Anixter only does this on rare occasions when they need to ensure they win a deal. Others, including end users, say they buy direct regularly.
  • What manufacturers are being sold direct by Anixter? When Anixter sells large volumes of products direct, manufacturers have to find out. Are these manufacturers complicit or do some manufacturers block Anixter from doing so?

Almost all agree that Anixter should, at least, be clear about what they do, so their suppliers and their customers can make informed decisions about doing business with them.

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