A third of VARs under threat

One in three UK resellers could go bust within the next five years, according to a stark report from global IT trade association Comptia.

The report stated that resellers are lacking in skills and are failing to understand new technology, resulting in lost business.

Matthew Poyiadgi, EMEA vice president at Comptia, said: “Vendors must be more sympathetic to resellers’ needs. They need to come together with their partners to face the challenge. Resellers are too often seen as nothing more than box-shifters [by end users] when they are increasingly required to be trusted technical advisers.”

However, one reseller blamed the deepening UK skills crisis on a failing education system and pointed the finger at vendors that have too much influence in the channel.

Howard Russell, director at Cisco VAR Signature Networks, said: “Vendors are squeezing the channel, forcing firms to stock their products exclusively. They are dictating the market more and more and it is the mid-sized reseller that will lose out.

“Education has a role to play, too. People are taught just basic PC skills and there is no focus on the broader aspects of technology.”
UK IT industry becoming less ‘techy’