Breathtakingly Confirmed Report #1

Hadco has been appointed to be Viking's distributor in a territory covering a swath from Virginia to Florida.  In the agreement expected to close March 31, Hadco will acquire Viking's three owned distributors in the territory: Palmetto of FL, Southeast of NC, and Atlantic of MD.  These are the answers, but the questions remaining are:

• Hadco is the BSH distributor in this territory (excluding FL) but can Viking and BSH coexist?  Is this the launch of the BSH distribution strategy, or has BSH woken this March 1 to the realization that they have played checkers while the distributors have played chess?  Is BSH in what we (on this side of the Atlantic) call a 'pickle'.  For those just passing by, the fine print here is that Hadco will ship what is ordered but they are unlikely to lift a finger in the selling or marketing of BSH's brands.  Other distributors aren't going to be tripping over themselves to take on BSH either. 
• What of Viking's strategy of owned distribution?  Why the about-face?  Did it fail or was it only a stop gap during the great distributor reshuffle of 2001/2002?  We think that they probably failed to meet expectations, but a Hadco doesn't knock on the door every day.

On behalf of the appliance trade, the ApplianceAdvisor.com wishes to thank America's unsung appliance distributors for making this the most fun one can have with your pants on and a business school education money can't buy.