Northern channel firms on the up

The balance of power in the UK channel could be tipping away from the south as cash-strapped engineers look to raise their standard of living and customers favour local suppliers.

Manchester-based ANS and Crewe-based Comms-care have both gained Cisco Gold status this summer, which some suggest could mark the start of a renaissance for the northern channel.

Richard Eglon, marketing manager at Comms-care, claimed the gulf in the cost of living between
the north and the south was jeopardising the south’s stranglehold over engineering talent.

“Resellers tend to congregate in the same area like estate agents,” he argued. “The more northern firms that become premier partners with leading vendors, the more resources will be pulled this way.”

Eglon added that environmental concerns are prompting firms in cities such as Manchester and Leeds to snub suppliers without a local presence.

Scott Fletcher, chief executive of ANS, said: “We are seeing far more CVs from people down south than 12 months ago.”

Stuart Reay, managing director of Mansfield-based distributor Arc Technology, said: “We are recruiting a lot of partners along the M62 corridor. The public sector in particular is definitely starting to take note of regional expertise rather than just working with large players.”