Small yet strategic acquisition will provide platform for further Asian
expansion in growing category
SANTA ANA, Calif., June 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Ingram Micro Inc. (NYSE: IM),
the world's largest technology distributor, has gained a greater presence in
the Asian enterprise mobility market by acquiring the distribution business
and certain assets of the Cantechs Group, one of China's largest providers of
auto-identification and data capture/point of sale (AIDC/POS) products and
services. The purchase price and other terms of the cash transaction, which
closed late last week, were not disclosed.
The Cantechs Group, established in 1988, is one of the top three AIDC/POS
distributors in China. It provides bar-code scanners, radio-frequency
identification devices, printers and other products produced by leading
manufacturers in the data capture and point-of-sale segments, such as IBM,
Metrologic, Symbol and Zebra. Headquartered in Beijing, the company has sales
and service operations in 20 Chinese cities, serving customers in a variety of
industries, including retail, logistics and manufacturing.
"This is a small, yet strategic acquisition that provides an excellent
platform to expand AIDC/POS through China and other parts of Asia," said
Shailendra Gupta, president, Ingram Micro Asia-Pacific. "AIDC/POS is a segment
with great opportunities in Asia, generating better margins than more common
information technology products. By acquiring the Cantechs distribution unit,
Ingram Micro is gaining a solid presence in this category within the large,
growing Chinese market. The Cantechs distribution business is profitable and
growing, with a talented management team and valuable relationships with key
vendors and customers. We look forward to working with this team and its
partners to further our collective growth and success."
Andrew Tay, vice president and general manager of Asia Pacific, Zebra,
said that he looks forward to a solid relationship with Ingram Micro.
"Ingram Micro is the only broad-based technology distributor with proven
expertise in AIDC/POS," he said. "Zebra and Ingram Micro have established a
successful partnership in North America, Europe and India, and we're looking
forward to expanding this relationship into China. We're confident that,
through this acquisition, Ingram Micro will help us build a robust market for
Zebra's products and services throughout Hong Kong and China."
Gupta added that the Cantechs business will integrate into the China
operations of Ingram Micro Asia-Pacific as a stand-alone unit responsible for
AIDC/POS sales, marketing and vendor and category management. The unit will
be able to leverage the existing distribution infrastructure and larger
customer base of Ingram Micro China.
"We're pleased to forge this partnership with Ingram Micro," said Maggie
Wei, general manager of the Cantechs distribution business. "Ingram Micro
understands our business and the unique needs of our employees, vendors and
customers. We're confident that we will maintain excellent customer and
vendor service through this transition. We look forward to gaining access to
Ingram Micro's breadth of expertise and financial strength."
Cautionary Statement for the Purpose of the Safe Harbor Provisions of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995
The matters in this press release that are forward-looking statements,
including but not limited to statements about future revenues, sales levels,
operating income, margins, stock-based compensation expense, integration
costs, cost synergies, operating efficiencies, profitability, market share and
rates of return, are based on current management expectations that involve
certain risks which, if realized, in whole or in part, could cause such
expectations to fail to be achieved and have a material adverse effect on
Ingram Micro's business, financial condition and results of operations,
including, without limitation: (1) intense competition, regionally and
internationally, including competition from alternative business models, such
as manufacturer-to-end-user selling, which may lead to reduced prices, lower
sales or reduced sales growth, lower gross margins, extended payment terms
with customers, increased capital investment and interest costs, bad debt
risks and product supply shortages; (2) integration of our acquired businesses
and similar transactions involve various risks and difficulties -- our
operations may be adversely impacted by an acquisition that (i) is not suited
for us, (ii) is improperly executed, or (iii) substantially increases our
debt; (3) foreign exchange rate fluctuations, devaluation of a foreign
currency, adverse governmental controls or actions, political or economic
instability, or disruption of a foreign market, and other related risks of our
international operations may adversely impact our operations in that country
or globally; (4) we may not achieve the objectives of our process improvement
efforts or be able to adequately adjust our cost structure in a timely fashion
to remain competitive, which may cause our profitability to suffer; (5) our
failure to attract new sources of profitable business from expansion of
products or services or risks associated with entry into new markets,
including geographies, products and services, could negatively impact our
future operating results; (6) an interruption or failure of or disruptions due
to changes to our information systems or subversion of access or other system
controls may result in a significant loss of business, assets, or competitive
information and may adversely impact our results of operations; (7) if there
is a downturn in economic conditions for an extended period of time, it will
likely have an adverse impact on our business; (8) significant changes in
supplier terms, such as higher thresholds on sales volume before distributors
may qualify for discounts and/or rebates, the overall reduction in the amount
of incentives available, reduction or termination of price protection, return
levels, or other inventory management programs, or reductions in payment
terms, may adversely impact our results of operations or financial condition;
(9) termination of a supply or services agreement with a major supplier or
product supply shortages may adversely impact our results of operations; (10)
changes in, or interpretations of, tax rules and regulations may adversely
affect our effective tax rates or we may be required to pay additional tax
assessments; (11) we cannot predict with certainty, the outcome of the SEC and
U.S. Attorney's inquiries or assessments by Brazilian taxing authorities; (12)
we may experience loss of business from one or more significant customers, and
an increased risk of credit loss as a result of reseller customers' businesses
being negatively impacted by dramatic changes in the information technology
products and services industry as well as intense competition among resellers
-- increased losses, if any, may not be covered by credit insurance or we may
not be able to obtain credit insurance at reasonable rates or at all; (13)
rapid product improvement and technological change resulting in inventory
obsolescence or changes in demand may result in a decline in value of a
portion of our inventory; (14) future terrorist or military actions could
result in disruption to our operations or loss of assets, in certain markets
or globally; (15) the loss of a key executive officer or other key employees,
or changes affecting the work force such as government regulations, collective
bargaining agreements or the limited availability of qualified personnel,
could disrupt operations or increase our cost structure; (16) changes in our
credit rating or other market factors may increase our interest expense or
other costs of capital, or capital may not be available to us on acceptable
terms to fund our working capital needs; (17) our failure to adequately adapt
to industry changes and to manage potential growth and/or contractions could
negatively impact our future operating results; (18) future periodic
assessments required by current or new accounting standards such as those
relating to long-lived assets, goodwill and other intangible assets and
expensing of stock options may result in additional non-cash charges; (19)
seasonal variations in the demand for products and services, as well as the
introduction of new products, may cause variations in our quarterly results;
and (20) the failure of certain shipping companies to deliver product to us,
or from us to our customers, may adversely impact our results of operations.
Ingram Micro has instituted in the past and continues to institute changes
to its strategies, operations and processes to address these risk factors and
to mitigate their impact on Ingram Micro's results of operations and financial
condition. However, no assurances can be given that Ingram Micro will be
successful in these efforts. For a further discussion of significant factors
to consider in connection with forward-looking statements concerning Ingram
Micro, reference is made to Item 1A Risk Factors of Ingram Micro's Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 29, 2007; other risks or
uncertainties may be detailed from time to time in Ingram Micro's future SEC
filings. Ingram Micro disclaims any duty to update any forward-looking
statements.
About the Ingram Micro Data Capture/POS Division
The Ingram Micro Data Capture/POS Division is a leading value-added
distributor of auto ID/data capture (AIDC), point-of-sale (POS), radio
frequency identification (RFID) and wireless solution products and services.
In addition to these technologies, the division also offers partners access to
the complete suite of Ingram Micro products and services. With offices and
distribution centers across North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia, the
Ingram Micro Data Capture/POS division delivers a comprehensive portfolio of
products and services to technology integrators around the world. For more
information, visit http://www.ingrammicro-dcpos.com.
About Ingram Micro Inc.
As a vital link in the technology value chain, Ingram Micro creates sales
and profitability opportunities for vendors and resellers through unique
marketing programs, outsourced logistics services, technical support,
financial services, and product aggregation and distribution. The company
serves more than 150 countries and is the only global broad-based IT
distributor with operations in Asia. Visit http://www.ingrammicro.com.
(C) 2008 Ingram Micro Inc. All rights reserved. Ingram Micro and the
registered Ingram Micro logo are trademarks used under license by Ingram Micro
Inc.
SOURCE Ingram Micro Inc.
CONTACT: Investors, Ria Marie Carlson, +1-714-382-4400,
ria.carlson@ingrammicro.com, or Kay Leyba, +1-714-382-4175,
kay.leyba@ingrammicro.com, or Media, Marie Connell, +1-714-382-2009,
marie.connell@ingrammicro.com, or Kevin Chen, +65 6511-2808,
kevin.chen@ingrammicro-asia.com, all of Ingram Micro Inc
Web site: http://www.ingrammicro.com
.gif)