Clavister eyes UTM channel
Swedish vendor wants 20 resellers on board by the end of the year
Security vendor Clavister has insisted there is space for another contender in the cut-throat unified threat management (UTM) channel after opening a UK office.
The Sweden-based firm has already recruited security distributor Sentryst and VARs Intalect and Network Secure and wants 20 resellers on board by the end of 2007.
Andy Foster, UK and Ireland sales manager at Clavister, said: “We recognise that we are late coming to market so we need to be more agile and supportive of channel partners to get the level of business we’re looking for.”
Foster said Clavister would back its VARs with business development, sales and technical training tools.
Alan Reid, managing director of Sentryst, told CRN: “The UTM landscape is very much clouded with UTM offerings that are just firewalls with bits bolted on. We were impressed that Clavister had a carrier-class product that scales down to SMEs.”
However, Phil Keeling, UK and Ireland country manager at rival Fortinet, said: “Clavister has a good brand name in Scandinavia. However, a firm entering the UK market at this stage faces an uphill task to establish brand recognition.”