Fortinet parts with Westcon

Security appliance vendor Fortinet has parted company with its distribution partner Westcon on a pan-European basis.

The move, which is effective from tomorrow, will see the vendor work with its three remaining distributors in the UK: Fresh Egg, Unipalm and NOXS UK.

A Fortinet representative told CRN the split was amicable, but was unable to comment further.

Bernie Dodwell, vendor alliances manager at Westcon UK, said: “It is a parting of the ways. We don’t fit their strategy, and they don’t fit in with the way we want to approach the convergence market.”

However, the split was welcomed by Fortinet’s remaining distributors. Kay Eggleston, managing director of NOXS UK, said: “Westcon is really a networking distributor and not very focused on the security arena. We are a niche security distributor and that is where we operate best.”

Dave Ellis, director of e-security at Unipalm, believed a cut was necessary. “Four distributors is too many for a company such as Fortinet. It needs distributors that are proactive and will help it build market share,” he said.

Graham Fox, managing director of Fresh Egg, echoed Ellis’ views. He said: “We have seen distributors come and go because they lack focus and ability to sell Fortinet’s products. It needs to work with partners that are focused and committed to their products.”