CDW CEO Edwardson Welcomes IBM-Lenovo PC Deal

IBM's decision to sell its PC business

Speaking at the Raymond James IT Supply Chain Conference in New York on Thursday, Edwardson said PCs manufactured by China-based Lenovo will allow CDW to compete much more aggressively against Dell.

"I am thrilled with this announcement," Edwardson said. "I've made two trips in the last two years to encourage Lenovo to come to the U.S. so we could have a more price-competitive product against Dell."

IBM has consistently declined to create low-priced machines to be more competitive with Dell, according to Edwardson. "We have many customers that just want to buy the least-expensive notebook possible," he said.

Vernon Hills, Ill.-based CDW continues to do well selling Acer systems against Dell, but Lenovo gives CDW another source that has first-class manufacturing capabilities and a "CDW-like culture," Edwardson said.

He added that he hopes -- and expects -- Lenovo to deliver low-cost PCs, which should help reduce the need for special price bidding in the channel to counter Dell's pricing. "My hope is that Lenovo will come out with low price points that we can hit Dell right between the eyes with...as soon as possible," he said.

What's more, Edwardson said he's personally encouraging all resellers and distributors to engage with Lenovo. "To help with this, we would gladly participate in an industry summit with everyone to help bring Lenovo to the U.S.," he said.