Trustmarque: We've drawn a line under rocky patch

Reseller opens up over future as part of business process outsourcing firm Liberata

Trustmarque has opened up on its future within new owner Liberata, hinting that a closer relationship with fellow acquisition Trinity could create "a very strong proposition".

The York-headquartered reseller was acquired by business process outsourcing firm Liberata last month at the end of a week-long search to find alternative funding after then-backer Dunedin pulled out, creating a "funding gap".

Trinity Expert Systems was grabbed from administration by Liberata a year ago, and Trustmarque's sales and marketing director Angelo di Ventura (pictured) said the duo has already been getting to know each other.

"There's no denying what you've got when you're looking at the fact that in the Liberata group, you've got the Trinity business and the Trustmarque business," he told CRN.

"People are asking what's going to happen. We're having a good look at that because that proposition together is a very powerful proposition."

He said the pair is already working together on certain things in the short term, but would not be drawn on whether a more-concrete deal could be on the cards next year.

"It wouldn't be fair for me to say at this stage," he said.

"Everyone is asking the question - if anybody should know if we are going to do anything it should be our staff. There are some obvious things we can do in the short term - tactical stuff. We've got a great sales organisation; they've got a great services team. We're going to use their resources, it makes sense."

Looking ahead

Di Ventura said his firm - which is now a fully owned subsidiary of Liberata - has very much drawn a line under its rocky period in September and is looking forward to the future.

He said all of the company's regional offices will remain open, but its small London branch has been merged with Liberata's offices in Holborn. He insisted that no staff have been let go as a result and said the company is even looking to "significantly" recruit more staff in both its sales and tech segments in the coming weeks.

"Internally we have drawn a line. We are very much focused on the future," he said.

During the week the firm was searching for new funding, Di Ventura said just one employee left the firm, but that the rest of its staff - as well as customers and suppliers - stood by the company.

"The reaction from our staff internally, the reaction from customers, the reaction from suppliers was probably one of the most humbling experiences of my life," he said.

Last summer, Di Ventura and Trustmarque chief executive Scott Haddow led a management buyout of the company, backed by Dunedin. As the new private-equity backer came on board, it brought in auditors KPMG, which on examination of the business, suggested it changed the way it recognises revenues, which as a result meant its profitability declined.

Di Ventura said context is key when analysing Trustmarque's business over recent years.

"If you run a business where your profitability is reported here, you make investment decisions based on your profitability being here," he said. "If KPMG were in place and profits were as they reported they are now, we wouldn't have made so many investment decisions as we made. We wouldn't have hired as many people as quickly as we did.

"The strategy is totally sound but the pace at which you make decisions based on that strategy changes. They were the right decisions at the time, you can only do what you do with the information you have at the time."

Staff first

Dozens of private-equity houses and fellow IT firms turned out in equal measure to take a look at Trustmarque during its brush with administration, Di Ventura said, but he insisted choosing an option which put staff and creditors first was essential.

"Some of the offers were not prepared to look after those creditors and that was really, really important to us," he said. "It's why we were only interested in doing a solvent deal. Those partners are the future of this business."

He said pre-pack administration offers were made, but were not seriously considered.

"We weren't interested. What was important to us was protecting the business, protecting jobs - we're a big employer, particularly in York - that was first and foremost," he said.