WiredMerchant.comForm E-commerce PartnershipWednesday August 2, 2:00 pm Eastern Time
Press Release
SOURCE: WiredMerchant.com Inc.
via BCE Emergis e-News Services
WiredMerchant.com and Targus Canada Form E-commerce Partnership
Toronto, Ontario
- Notebook PC Growth Builds Momentum for Accessory Market -
WiredMerchant.com Inc., a leading Internet intermediary for computer products, today announced a strategic e-commerce partnership with Targus Canada Ltd. to sell the company's protective carrying cases and electronic accessories for notebooks and other mobile computing devices on WiredMerchant.com's Web site. Under the terms of the agreement, WiredMerchant.com will have the right to sell the entire line of Targus Mobile Accessories to complement the intermediary's existing broad base of computer products.
According to one Canadian-based industry research firm, shipments for notebook PCs increased by 24 per cent for the fourth quarter in 1999.(i) Despite this growth, damage to notebook PCs is expected to be on the rise. In 1998, for instance, it cost an estimated (US) $700 million to fix and replace notebook PCs. The same figure is reported to jump to $1 billion this year.(ii) Targus, for instance, offers notebook PC users an Air Protection System (APS) for some of its carrying cases. APS combines vented air cushioning with high-density foam padding in a single chamber to protect users' notebook PCs.
``The WiredMerchant.com and Targus Canada Ltd. partnership is a result of growing customer demand for mobile products,'' said Don Sanderson, CEO, WiredMerchant.com Inc. ``The rapid growth of the mobile computing and remote access markets further supplements our strong offerings for this market, including notebooks from leading manufacturers such as Sceptre, Dell, Toshiba, Fujitsu, IBM and Compaq.(iii) Targus Canada will help us drive even greater mobile product selection to our customer base, helping them protect and add value to their mobile solutions.``
``Targus Canada sees this new partnership as an opportunity to explore new frontiers in e-commerce,'' said Zeno Ricci, vice president of Targus Canada Ltd. ``WiredMerchant.com brings considerable marketing experience and background in the computer industry to this endeavour. We look forward to working with the staff at WiredMerchant.com and are excited to be a part of what will be a mutually successful alliance.''
WiredMerchant.com facilitates the sale and distribution of end-of-line and hard-to-find computer products. For resellers, VARs (value-added resellers), distributors, corporate and government purchasers and system integrators, WiredMerchant.com's business-to-business Web site utilizes a comprehensive online database to bring customers together with vendors worldwide unable to sell products through existing sales channels.
Based in Richmond Hill, Ontario, WiredMerchant.com takes the hassle out of buying and selling end-of-line and hard-to-find computer products from over 300 original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). The company is an e-commerce intermediary backed by EcomPark Inc., a Canadian-based strategic Internet services firm that provides seed capital to Internet start-ups and internally develops its own Internet assets. WiredMerchant.com sells a comprehensive offering of new, end-of-life and hard-to-find products to Value Added Resellers, System Integrators and Fortune 1000 companies, as well as other distributors and retailers. WiredMerchant.com's ability to source end-of-line and hard-to-find products provides its customers with a one-stop shop for specialty product offerings.
Targus pioneered the notebook computer carrying case, partnering with corporations, retailers and OEMs to provide the best possible protection for notebook PCs. As the leading global supplier of portable solutions, Targus continues to define and shape the market for portable computing accessories. Targus has offices on every continent and distributes its products in over 145 countries. Targus Canada Ltd. is headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario.