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For years, distributors were the middlemen of the channel: the “pick, pack and ship” operators moving products from vendor to partner to customer. But in Australia’s technology sector, that role has been shifting fast.
According to channel partners — from fast-growing MSPs to national integrators — distributors are now under pressure to deliver deeper strategic value, richer market insights, and support that goes far beyond logistics. As margins tighten, customer demands accelerate, and AI reshapes the market, the distributor–partner relationship is becoming more collaborative, consultative, and multi-layered.
The most effective distributors today are co-strategists, solution builders, and market guides, often extensions of a partner’s sales, marketing, and technical teams. They sit in go-to-market planning sessions, help identify gaps, and increasingly offer services from AI-enabled automation to complex licensing support.
