Eddy Bergiers European Regional Sales Director, Hammer

Storage distributor, Hammer plc, has appointed a new director to oversee its regional European business.

 Eddy Bergiers will be based at Hammer’s office in Mechelen, Belgium, and will manage regional offices in Almere, Netherlands; Brescia, Italy; and Stockholm, Sweden.

James Ward, MD of Hammer, explains how Bergiers’ appointment exemplifies the company’s dedication to regional markets: "Hammer is maintaining year-on-year UK growth, but we are also experiencing tremendous growth via our regional European offices. Expanding our business across the board is of great importance to Hammer, and our continuing objective is to be the strongest value-add distributor in every territory where we have a presence. Eddy’s appointment and central location will assist us in enhancing our understanding of local businesses and cultures, and will ensure the continuing strategic development of our regional businesses."

Hammer’s European success has grown since the opening of its first international office in 2002, and in summer 2012, Hammer was named in The Sunday Times HSBC International Track 200, which lists Britain’s mid-market private companies with the fastest-growing international sales – Hammer achieved 23.44% international growth since 2009.

As a result of its growth to date and to position future growth, there are two imminent developments: the Nordics office is expanding and relocating this month, and early next year will see Belgium office relocate and expand to include a mainland Europe logistics hub and an integration centre.

Hammer has extended its value-add ethos across its European business, for instance with pre- and post-sales support, a track record within vertical industries that have differing storage requirements, close vendor partnerships, and distribution abilities. Additionally, it is the sole fulfilment agent for NetApp’s OEM business in EMEA, the leading distributor for enterprise disk and SSD, plus Hammer offers bespoke design/build/support of Intel whitebox servers and more.

Bergiers has experience in IT distribution, and says: "I am really looking forward to working closely with Hammer’s vendors and customers to provide in Europe the high level of storage focus and expertise which Hammer has become synonymous with. I have seen first hand the requirements that resellers in the European region have, and now I am working for a company that can truly deliver those needs. Hammer has had a fantastic track record of international growth, and I will enjoy building upon that record."

Ward continues: "Hammer has the capacity to grow its position at the forefront of the European storage industry. We look forward to moving forward in this area with these exciting new developments."