D&M Holdings Launched a New Multi-tiered Channel Program

This Week In Consumer Electronics magazine reports that D&M Holdings, an electronics marketing firm, launched a new channel program that is multi-tiered. The initiative is being offered to resellers of its Denon, Marantz, and Boston Acoustic brands’ audio merchandise.

D&M Holdings was established through the merger of Denon and Marantz in 2002. Since that time, the firm has acquired a number of businesses, Boston Acoustic one of them.

The program has several new requirements and strategies in place, including:

• Distributors and dealers of D&M’s products need to sign ‘new’ reseller agreements
• D&M recognizes an innovative unilateral advertised pricing procedure for the company’s brands
• Prohibition of third-party sales and transshipping
• Prohibition of sales via the internet unless channel partners met a significant screening process

D&M North American president Bob Weissburg told the magazine, “Our fully transparent and clearly delineated reseller authorization program will allow us to be more strategic and focused in all channels, guard and protect our brand integrity, forge stronger relationships with our dealers, and also proactively monitor and take swift action to halt practices such as illegal transshipping and misuse of our intellectual property.”

Weissburg went on to explain that the company is very serious about its market position, and implementing this new channel management strategy “is an important step forward in helping us protect and reward our valued and indispensable authorized reseller network for all three D&M brands.”

The portal created through this new initiative is one factor in a widespread, multi-tiered strategy the company implemented to successfully manage channel sales for its brands, in addition to boosting transparency. D&M is striving to create a closer partner work relationship with resellers to ensure ‘end users’ purchase products from authorized channel partners that are qualified. This will provide the platform to promote all Denon, Marantz, and Boston Acoustics’ innovations, technologies, brand benefits, and performance through informed communications.

The new initiative is successfully moving forward, D&M noted its revised confidential agreements have been signed by close to 99 percent of its resellers via the new internet portal. They have also cited recognition of D&M’s new unilateral advertised pricing policy. The incentive for the remaining resellers to jump on board is strong: they will not be able to place orders unless they sign the agreement, go through the screening process, and are approved by D&M.