back to article Sales dive at UK's oldest tech wholesaler: PC crash splashes Northamber in red

UK wholesaler Northamber swung to a dramatic loss in fiscal '13 caused by a costly restructure, sliding commodity product sales and eroding margins. The Surrey-based distie – Blighty's oldest tech wholesaler – today reported an operating loss of £1.15m for the year to 30 June, compared to a profit of £97,000 in the previous 12 …

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  1. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Hmmmm

    Are they truly the oldest? Guess depends on definition of when it was founded.

    Northamber was found in 1980, SCC was founded 5 years earlier in 1975, although it was initially SCR & SCS, so I guess it's when you class the founding as

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Hmmmm

      SSC are a reseller, not a distributor

  2. Mage Silver badge
    Coat

    Maybe oldest PC supplier still Running?

    Did we buy the ACT Sirus1 from them? We were selling that before the inferior IBM PC hit these shores. I can't remember what we bought off them in my Company founded 1980. I left late 1982, but we certainly did use Northamber.

    I Suppose a UK PC supplier can only be such since 1981, whatever they sold earlier.

  3. The Godfather
    Coat

    declining momentum...

    A business sadly on its way out and with no escape mechanism or alternative path.. It's cash over the years should have been used more efficiently and not been used to prop up declining sales and profit. Another couple of years of similar decline and its fixed assets will be higher than its current. Was a terrific cash generator in its heyday and should have used it invest in growth.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: declining momentum...

      Should have been sold many years ago (at least 1 serious offer was made apparently) when it was doing a whole lot better.

      Under different management, I don't think there would have been so many vendors "bailing out" over the years (it's not just a recent thing).

  4. David Goadby

    Doomed

    They have run the course and would be better to take the remaining cash and shutting up shop now rather than taking the painful slide into insolvency. With their better competitors also struggling then a take-over isn't likely either.

  5. JustANumber

    Doesn't help how the company is run/dictated by Phillips. I 'served time' there which ended early this year and it is awful they are more concerned with the staff reaching 4 hours talk time on the phones than they are with actually selling anything.

    Here's a tip David rather than worrying about who has or in most cases hasn't hit their four hours why not go out and get some decent vendors on board and give what's left of your staff something to actually speak about on the phone rather than having to waffle on about anything they can just to make up the minutes on the phone?

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