PARIS, LONDON, DUBAI, MOSCOW, February 8th, 2010 – DISTREE XXL 2010, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA)’s premier independent channel event, opened today with a record attendance of more than 850 senior executives from the distribution channel including vendors, distributors and, for the first time, e-tailers. DISTREE XXL 2010 will run from 8th-11th February 2010 in Monaco.
Unlike conventional trade shows, DISTREE XXL unites senior channel-focused executives from hundreds of vendors with major distributors from 65 countries across EMEA. More than 4,500 one-on-one meetings have already been pre-scheduled using DISTREE Events’ powerful web-planning platform. Each year, hundreds of new distribution agreements are signed as a result of business discussions initiated at DISTREE XXL.
“We have allocated extra space to accommodate the unprecedented demand from vendors to attend DISTREE XXL 2010,” said Farouk Hemraj, CEO at DISTREE Events, the company behind DISTREE XXL. “The event’s year-on-year growth – both from a vendor and distributor perspective – underlines just how strategic DISTREE XXL has become in the annual channel calendar in EMEA.”
Senior managers from 325 volume distributors will attend DISTREE XXL 2010. With delegates from 65 countries meeting 129 confirmed international vendors – including 40 vendors attending for the first time – DISTREE XXL’s attendance has risen more than 15% year-on-year. In addition to the 4,000 plus pre-scheduled one-on-one meetings, thousands more will be organised during the event itself.
DISTREE XXL also includes a comprehensive conference programme, workshop sessions and awards, including the ‘EMEA Channel Academy: 2010 Awards’. This year’s speaker list includes:
Acer – Semmy Levit, EMEA Distribution Head
bChannels – Matt Rowland Jones, General Manager
Channel Experts – Francis Tchertoff, Consultant
Context – Howard Davies, CEO and Co-Founder
Context – Jeremy Davies, Co-Founder
Gartner – Ranjit Atwal, Principal Research Analyst
GfK – Dr. Rudolf Aunkofer, Director
GfK – Pascal Bollon, Director
HP – Antoine Barre, VP PSG Channel Sales Organisation EMEA
IDC – Eszter Morvay, Research Manager EMEA Personal Computing
Lenovo – Vincent Fauquenot, VP Channel Partners Organisation Western Europe
Microsoft – Dana Manciagli, General Manager OEM Division Worldwide
Regent – Pradip Somaia, Distribution Sector Expert
VIA – Julian Dent, Managing Director
“DISTREE XXL’s independence is its strength and this allows us to unite decision-makers and business leaders from across the entire ICT and CE channel,” Hemraj continued. “DISTREE XXL is the ultimate event platform for vendors looking to launch, build or manage distribution channels in EMEA.”
For the first time, DISTREE XXL has also invited leading e-tailers from across EMEA to join the region’s premier channel event in 2010. The landmark move is the first time that e-tailers have been added to the DISTREE XXL delegate mix and underlines the growing importance of web-based sales channels.
DISTREE XXL remains the most cost-effective event platform for vendors seeking to launch, build or manage distribution channels within EMEA. Follow live updates from DISTREE XXL 2010 www.twitter.com/distreexxl
