technologyreseller.co.uk 21 M&A vendors of Brigantia’s that we can add to the group, for instance Heimdal, KnowBe4 and CyberSmart.” For Shaw, Elovade’s wider portfolio, including its EL-branded cloud storage service, offers ample scope for Brigantia to add new vendors in areas outside its core cybersecurity specialism, such as IT infrastructure, email archiving, business continuity, storage, compliance, and MSP tools like PSAs and RMMs. “RMMs and PSAs are something we could do that we don’t do now, which also shows the benefits of being part of a Group. We would probably not launch the bigger names in this space in the UK, even if they let us, because every MSP in the country is familiar with them and either works with them or doesn’t. We can’t really add any value there, but we can with some of the up-and-coming challenger vendors that will be entering the market. That fits in with what we’ve done in the past and also takes account of the UK market,” he says. “Another option might be to take the MailStore archiving business. Email archiving is widely used in Germany, but in the UK it is primarily employed in regulated businesses. With the rise of DORA and other rules coming in like CAF, it’s going to be something we will have to look at.” “We don’t have to roll out all vendors in all regions,” adds Weber. “That’s not what we are after. It’s picking the right vendors for the right regions on a countryby-country basis.” In other words, business as usual. “For me personally, as one of the remaining family members in what was a family business, it is very exciting to be part of something bigger. Brigantia would have grown at a similar rate, year after year, unless I was able to persuade Martin and Iain (Shaw, Founder) to invest millions to accelerate its growth. Being part of the Elovade Group allows us to invest further and challenge ourselves to go faster and be even better,” he says. Weber points out that from a Group perspective, acquisitions generate growth in several ways. “One is by adding companies, adding regions, filling white spots on the map where we want to be present. The other is through PMI, post-merger integration. You can add many single entities in different countries, but at some point, if you want to leverage the synergies within the group, you will need to have a single leading system in terms of ERP, CRM, marketing automation etc.. That’s what we’re building at the moment, a harmonised technical infrastructure that we will roll out across the group.” He adds that Elovade is also developing a new cloud services platform for partners, customising an out-of-the-box solution to meet their unique requirements. “We don’t want to become just a cloud distributor. However, we must be competitive with them in terms of technology, as that is one area where they excel. As a value-added distributor, we must evolve because cloud marketplaces are becoming increasingly prevalent. That said, with our portfolio of products, vendors and services, as well as our service differential, we have a good opportunity to compete with them using our platform. “A larger MSP can use numerous cloud platforms, as long as they have a good integration into their PSA. We are building our platform to have those integrations. Then it doesn’t matter if you have 1, 2, 3 or more platforms delivering your products, as long as it’s automated, the billing goes out of your own system and all the data gets delivered straight through an API into your system.” Additional vendors Being part of a Group also allows Brigantia and Elovade to take on additional vendors. “When making acquisitions, we like to see a certain overlap of vendors, because that shows us we are already working in the same direction,” explains Weber. “A big focus of ours is prevention in cybersecurity, where we have at least one vendor in common, Hornetsecurity. We are also interested in them to utilise the marketplace for hyperautomation, billing integration and all that. But they get very little or no support around the products themselves, how they work, how to sell and market them, and what to do when something doesn’t quite work as planned.” The ability to support partners effectively – and enable vendors to expand into new regions – is clearly dependent on a distributor’s knowledge of local market conditions, and, in building out a pan‑European business, Weber has always sought to maintain that local expertise, including the services of the existing Managing Directors of the companies he acquires. “Keeping knowledge management in the region is super-important because every region is different, requirements are different, and go-to-market is different. That local touch has to remain,” he says. In that respect, his approach is very much focused on continuity, which is one of the aspects of the acquisition Shaw is keen to emphasise. “Yes, Elovade is a group business, and yes, it is a European business and wants to exercise the benefits that come from being so, but it also understands the value of local expertise. It’s not saying it knows what’s best for the UK, and I’m not saying I know what’s best for other regions. Its approach is to bring together the strengths of both businesses and give local leaders freedom to act.” UK ambitions Weber says he had always planned to enter the UK market but had not found the right acquisition target until he came across Brigantia in early 2024. He contacted Angus and Martin (Wright, former Chairman) over LinkedIn, and it soon became clear that the two businesses were culturally aligned and had much to offer each other. Shaw points out that even though its board members were in their sixties, Brigantia was in no hurry to sell; there was no need to do so. “It is a very strong, growing business, and it’s possible we wouldn’t have sold to anyone else, but from the first meeting, Elovade felt right, and as we went through the process, it became very clear that we are a good fit. We are aligned on who our customers are, who our partners are and how our teams communicate with each other. That was important. If it had been a UK player, it might have been very different, but the fact that we’re the first Elovade company in the UK and Ireland is a really interesting development for the team to be a part of. continued... www.brigantia.com
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