Renaissance to lose Apple exclusivity deal?

Sources close to Renaissance have told The Channel that the company is on the verge of losing the exclusive distribution rights for Apple and SonicWall products in New Zealand.

Renaissance's existing distribution contract with Apple expires at the end of September and as yet a new contract has not yet been signed.

Insiders point to October 1st as the date when the news will be made public.

Possible outcomes of such a move could see Apple opening up its own New Zealand office or another distributor – such as Ingram Micro – muscling its way in to the situation and begin distributing Apple products alongside Renaissance.

When contacted, Renaissance declined to comment on the rumours. At time of publication Ingram Micro had not returned our request for comment.

The Channel contacted key market analysts regarding the rumour, but few, if any, followed the company closely. This is because the company's market capitalisation is, as of today, just $12.3 million. Back in December 2005 it was as high as $70 million.

Last month Renaissance said its board is examining the level of its working capital, and may consider raising equity to fund growth as part of a new package.

There's no doubt among the analysts we spoke with that the loss of both Apple and SonicWall exclusivity deals, along with a new but unproven management structure, would make it extremely difficult for the company to raise any further capital.

Yesterday Renaissance named its new Direct Sales management team that would sell the whole Renaissance portfolio of products - Apple products, networking and security solutions, peripherals, appliances, application development, training and technology services - directly to education and enterprise customers.

Stay tuned for further updates.