Econocom - 2020 annual report

02 group overview group positioning

The Technology 3.1. Management & Financing activity A MARKET IMPACTED 3.1.1. BY THE HEALTH CRISIS

traditional consumption patterns are still present, especially for strategic hardware, which large companies continue to want to keep control of, a mixed model is emerging in the IT and digital segments. Increasingly accustomed to the new standards of digital leaders, companies are now seeking solutions to improve the customer and employee experience, while favouring an approach based on return on investment, while making their costs more flexible at the same time. Leasing boosted by the circular economy The circular economy is another notable market trend. It has led to the development of the leasing model, which relies on an organisedand structuredreuseand recycling channel. This model allows companiesto rely on specialists for the responsible and sustainable management of their equipment. ECONOCOM: À LA CARTE 3.1.3. FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS A pioneer in leasing, the Econocom group generated 36% of its 2020 revenue through Technology Management & Financing. Today, the offer responds, more than ever before, to companies’expectationsregarding financing.While30%of thembelievethat the lack of financial resources is the greatest obstacle to their digital transformation, Econocom offers a wide range of adapted financial solutions. These solutions enable them to fast-trackthe completionof projects (connected devices, mobility, business hardware, IT & multimedia, industry hardware, energy, etc.), while meeting the financial and operational constraints of the players (CFOs, CIOs) and business lines involved.

The global Covid-19 pandemic has disrupted all activities, particularlythe rental market. In France in 2020, we saw a decline in the rental activity for business equipment. This general decrease was mainly due to a decrease in technology spending of around 6.6% (1) . Nevertheless,2020 ended on a positive note thanks to operating leases (excluding purchaseoptions) which returned to positive territory in the last quarter. A DEMAND FOR INCREASED 3.1.2. FLEXIBILITY More agile financing solutions The current fragile and uncertain economic and financial context reinforces the tendency of companies to opt for solutions that offer flexible payment and flexible durations of use and that enable to maintain liquidities. As such, leasing is an obvious alternative for companies seeking to stagger their payments when needed, to have variable installments for their rents, or even to pay for their equipment only when used, or to benefit from a cash contribution through the sales/leaseback transactions of their technological assets. Digital transformation: a strong trend fast-growing digital transformation market, the trend of consumption based on use rather than ownership is gathering strength. While Boosted by a

Forrester Study. (1)

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2020 annual report