Arrow looks to expand European presence with Logix buy

Arrow Electronics has entered into exclusive negotiations to purchase all of the shares of Logix, a value-added distributor of midrange servers, storage, and software in 11 European countries.

By Suzanne Deffree, Managing Editor, News -- Electronic News, 2/19/2008

Arrow Electronics Inc today announced it has entered into exclusive negotiations to purchase all of the shares of Logix SA, a value-added distributor of midrange servers, storage, and software in 11 European countries.

Logix, a subsidiary of Groupe Open, is headquartered in Courbevoie, France, and has additional operations in Belgium, Luxembourg, Morocco, Poland, the Netherlands, Israel, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, and Norway. The deal will bring the Arrow enterprise computing solutions (ECS) group’s geographic reach to 24 countries and adds 500 employees to Arrow’s total headcount.

“With this acquisition, we continue the transformation of our ECS business,” said William E. Mitchell, chairman, president, and CEO of Melville, NY-based Arrow, in a statement. “Two years ago we entered the European marketplace and this transaction represents the next step in our strategic expansion in this important region.”

The move also secures Arrow’s place in the enterprise storage and security and virtualization software markets, for which Arrow claims to be the top distributor. That standing helped the electronics supply chain giant to claim a 111% year-over-year sales increase for its ECS group in Q4 2007.

“With its experienced management team and highly talented sales, marketing and design professionals, Logix is well positioned to take advantage of the increasing demand for virtualization and state-of-the-art infrastructure solutions,” Mitchell continued. “Logix’s best-in-class portfolio of suppliers and focus on the fast growing mid-market will enable Arrow to strengthen relationships with key suppliers and increase our value proposition in the European marketplace.”

Arrow noted that the transaction is subject to consultation with the Logix works council and any definitive agreement will be subject to EU competition clearance. Financial terms of the possible share purchases have not yet been disclosed.