Ingram Micro Defies the Recession : Computers: New consumer buying patterns help the Santa Ana-based distributor post a 35% quarterly sales gain.

Aided by new software sales and changes in computer buying patterns, computer distributor Ingram Micro Inc. continued to coast through the recession during the second quarter with a 35% increase in sales.

The Santa Ana-based company reported revenue of $616 million for the quarter ended June 26, compared to sales of $457 million for last year’s second quarter. The privately held company, a subsidiary of Ingram Industries in Nashville, Tenn., does not release earnings.

Ingram Micro is the world’s leading distributor of computer products and commands 29% of the U.S. market, compared to 18% for competitor Merisel Inc. in El Segundo, according to industry analysts.

Linwood (Chip) Lacy, Ingram Micro’s chief executive, said sales growth benefited somewhat from greater use of distribution by major computer companies--Apple, Compaq, Hewlett-Packard Co., NEC Corp. and IBM. He said contracts with the big companies will provide greater revenue for Ingram in the last half of the year.

Major computer manufacturers avoided distributors for years because they believed that authorized dealers had the necessary product know-how. But as consumers become more comfortable buying their own equipment through other venues, more manufacturers have opted to use distributors.

Sales also picked up with the April release of Windows 3.1, the second-generation graphical operating environment from software giant Microsoft Corp., Lacy said.

He noted, however, that the percentage growth in sales had begun to slow, especially in the United States and Europe. David Dukes, president of Ingram Micro, said the move to the company’s new headquarters in Santa Ana slightly disrupted business.

For the current third quarter, Lacy predicted sales would be healthy because the current computer price war in the industry would likely spur sales of software and accessories, which are also sold by Ingram Micro.

Lacy said that the price war and an expected shakeout among personal computer manufacturers has made Ingram Micro more cautious about taking on new products for distribution.

“You change how much credit risk you take on in buying from manufacturers,” he said.

Separately, the company said it appointed Bernd Balzer, a veteran in the German computer distribution industry, to the position of vice president for German and East European operations in anticipation of the company’s expansion into Central and Eastern Europe.