Aruba in preparations for an IPO
Wireless networking vendor claims the move hinges on its upcoming performance
Wireless networking vendor Aruba is bracing itself for an Initial Public Offering (IPO).
The vendor said the move to become public is in the pipeline and hinges on its upcoming performance.
The news follows unrest in Aruba’s distribution channel last week (CRN, 1 May) after it extended its European contract with Noxs to cover the UK market.
Bob Vickers, UK head of sales at Aruba, told CRN: “Aruba is getting ready for an IPO to become a public company. There is not a definite time frame. It depends on the market performance of the company. We have become profitable and are well ahead of targets. The next stage is an IPO.”
Vickers added the IPO would happen “sooner rather than later”.
Jess Thompson-Hughes, managing director of Aruba distributor React Technologies, said: “Aruba has been preparing for an IPO from day one. Hopefully it will give it more money for channel investment.”
Ash Hussein, sales and marketing director at network security reseller Axial Systems, had reservations about Aruba’s planned IPO.
“From what I’ve seen of IPOs, they can be detrimental to vendor and reseller relationships due to external pressures,” he said. “The IPO will give Aruba more cash. The normal objective would be to grow sales by injecting cash into visual marketing to raise Aruba’s profile.”