Juniper Networks will end its relationship with Westcon as an EMEA-wide distributor in 2018.
The networking and security vendor said that signing a pan-EMEA deal with Nuvias in September prompted a distribution review. After January 2018, Westcon will look after Germany Spain, and Holland.
EMEA channel chief Kristian Kerr announced that Juniper Networks signed an EMEA-wide contract with a new distributor, Nuvias, in September 2017.
“As part of this new distribution landscape, from January 2018 Westcon will continue to represent Juniper, specifically in Germany, Spain and the Netherlands. Juniper will continue to work diligently with our distribution landscape to maintain full focus on our solution portfolio and to build market growth together”, he said.
The move is a bit of a shock as Westcon has been an EMEA-wide distributor of Juniper for the best part of nine years.
Juniper was worried that it might become over-distributed after signing a pan-EMEA deal with value-added security firm Nuvias in September, and a contract with UK-based broadliner Westcoast in February.
2017 has been a bad year for Westcon. Its owner Datatec issued a profit warning in May after it admitted its earnings per share for fiscal 2017 would fall by 66 percent. Westcon’s EMEA business saw sales falling by 30 percent while global sales declined by seven percent.
It was kicked in the bottom line with an SAP roll out that went live in November 2016 and created a mess which its parent company has attributed towards its lacklustre performance.
Westcon’s Americas operations, and 10 per cent of its EMEA and APAC business, were flogged to US distributor Synnex at the start of September for $800 million.
