At embedded world 2024, Mike Slater, Vice President of Global Business Development at DigiKey, speaks with Mick Elliott from Electronic Specifier about the market trends and developments DigiKey is experiencing.
“Back in 2023, we made a significant investment in inventory. We want to make sure we have the widest product breadth in stock, available to ship the same day … and we saw new customers and customer growth that we hadn’t seen in many years. We also saw a lot of new designs … and it’s really attributed to what we believe is going to be a back half 2024 momentum, from a revenue standpoint.”
The market in Europe has been flat through Q1 and into Q2 of 2024, but Slater highlights that the company is in a better position inventory-wise than in recent years, despite ongoing challenges with advanced semiconductors and electromechanical products.
DigiKey’s Marketplace has grown as a natural extension of its business, enhancing the range of products and technologies available. This includes the ability to ship directly from European suppliers to European customers, improving efficiency and reducing costs. The Marketplace has also facilitated the inclusion of automation and control products.
DigiKey continues to focus on design and integration services, partnering with companies to solve customer problems and stay ahead of technological advancements. The company is also enhancing its e-commerce platform to streamline the customer journey from product selection to purchase.
Regarding the new warehouse distribution centre, Slater confirmed that it is fully operational as of December 2023, handling approximately 25,000 orders daily. This facility supports DigiKey’s growth ambitions, leveraging automation to manage the expected increase in business over the next decade.
Watch the video to find out more.