PRINT
IT
RESELLER.UK
7
BULLETIN
New sponsors for
VOW 2017
ExaClair and Philips Dictation have joined
the list of sponsors for VOW’s 2017 incentive,
at gold and silver level respectively.
The VOW 2017 incentive is open to VOW
Venture partners across all three tiers of the
programme – Venture Red, Venture Gold and
Venture Diamond.
Winning resellers will enjoy a luxurious trip to
either Montenegro or Méribel, France. Winners
have to meet specific sales targets for each of the
vendors supporting the incentive throughout the
promotional period from July – December 2016.
Heather McManus, VOW’s Commercial and
Marketing Director, said: “This year, our incentive
is even more exciting as it builds on the success of
Heatwave that was launched last year. The 2017
incentive also sees an increased engagement level
to include all tiers of the VOW Venture programme.
This broadened range of participation is also
positive for the supporting vendors and respective
sales targets.”
Kevin Wharton, Marketing Manager of filing,
storage and paper products supplier ExaClair
said: “This is the second year we are supporting
VOW’s incentive and we are very keen to see
VOW’s customers grow their businesses and want
to be part of that growth. We’re looking forward
to informing customers about the various brand
solutions and promotions we’re running as part of
this incentive and specifically our promotions for
our Europa and Guildhall brands.”
Beta launches specialist
digital content solutions
business
Beta Distribution PLC has launched a new
business to help resellers capitalise on the
accelerating convergence of AV and IT in the
Audio-Visual industry.
Beta Distribution already has a significant
presence in the AV market through sales of
interactive technology products, projectors and
related products. It has set up Beta Digital Media
Solutions (BetaDMS) because the convergence of
IT and AV has created a requirement for additional
support.
Joel Chimoindes, Managing Director of the new
company, said: “IT and AV are converging faster
than they ever have before. No longer are resellers’
conversations about AV installations with the AV
Manager or Facilities Manager in an end user. They
now include the IT department and are complex.”
Increasingly, AV projects include security,
network centricity, scalability, centralised
monitoring & maintenance and other issues
normally associated with IT installations.
Chimoindes says that BetaDMS is designed to
make things easier by providing resellers with a
single point of contact for complex projects.
He said: “We are constructing our business in a
way that suits our reseller customers, allowing them
to have conversations with one supplier about
complex multi-vendor solutions. By having this
single source approach we remove the frustrations
of dealing with different suppliers for different
parts of the solution. In a nutshell, resellers find the
opportunity and we’ll do the rest.”
The company has already secured two new
direct distribution agreements, with Philips and
Signage Live, which will enable BetaDMS to
provide digital signage with content delivery and
services to aid assessment, deployment and future
management of installations.
Cloud-based security
services
Synaxon UK has formed a partnership
with specialist MSP distributor, Zedsphere,
providing MSP members a fast, secure,
effective and reliable way to offer cloud-
based security services from Webroot,
which is already a Synaxon supplier partner.
With its smart, collective threat intelligence
and centralised enforcement of access policies,
Webroot’s SecureAnywhere solution provides
robust defence for networks and mobile users
and against advanced cyber-attacks and
malware.
Through Zedsphere, Synaxon MSP members
will also be able to access the comprehensive
Webroot Channel Edge Partner Programme,
which provides a range of benefits, including
access to technical and sales support and
training, account management, pricing discounts
and flexible billing options.
Northamber to distribute
Armor printer supplies
As it seeks to increase sales in the UK,
Armor Group has appointed Northamber as
an authorised Distributor of its compatible
printer and fax supplies.
Bee Sanghera, IT Channel Manager UK,
ARMOR, said: “As ARMOR looks to expand its
presence in the UK market, developing a strategic
partnership with a leading distributor such as
Northamber was a simple decision to make. We
feel Northamber’s legacy and experience allows
them to help us increase our breadth in the UK,
and we are delighted to be partnering with them.”
For its part, Northamber views the partnership as
a significant
opportunity to
bring a widely
recognised printer
consumables
brand to its
customer base.
Alex Phillips, Director of Strategy, Northamber
plc, said: “Northamber are very excited to add
ARMOR to our already strong print portfolio.
This truly reinforces our position as the go
to destination for printers in the UK. ARMOR
perfectly complements our existing hardware
line-up, allowing us to help resellers to offer the
perfect print and consumables solutions for all
their end user needs.”
Apogee investment to
fund further acquisitions
Managed services provider Apogee
Corporation is planning further acquisitions
in the UK and Europe, following investment
from Equistone Partners Europe in a
transaction that values the company at
£185 million.
Apogee employs more than 450 staff and
operates from 14 office locations across the UK
and Europe. It provides document technology and
managed service solutions from multiple global
brands, including Ricoh, Canon, Xerox, Konica
Minolta and Kyocera, and this year has grown run
rate turnover to more than £120 million.
Independent investment firm Equistone
operates across the UK, France, Germany and
Switzerland and typically invests between
€
25m and
€
125m of equity in businesses with
enterprise values of up to
€
300m.
Jason Collins, who will remain joint CEO with
Robin Stanton-Gleaves, said Apogee would use
the investment to increase market share across
the UK and Europe through organic growth and
acquisitions.
He said: “Apogee is in a very strong position to
capture a greater share of the UK and European
managed services market and we will use the
investment and partnership with Equistone to take
the Company to yet another level and accelerate
our growth. Significant acquisitions in the UK and
further overseas expansion in Europe as well as
continued organic growth are top of our agenda.”
As part of the deal, Equistone partners Steve
O’Hare and Andrew Backen will join the Apogee
board as non-executive directors.
