Misco MD: 'This isn't the old Misco; it's not about hitting call stats anymore'

Misco was one of six companies selected to feature in CRN Rising Stars 2022. Its MD Adam Muir opens up on how the business has changed since his team revived it in 2019

This Q&A appears in CRN Rising Stars 2022, which explores how six high-performance channel partners are prospering in a post-pandemic world.

UK Computer Group acquired the Misco brand in 2019. How did that come about?

I joined UKCG back in December 2017, shortly after Misco's demise. I'd had 14 years at Misco, so I knew how well received the brand was in the marketplace and how customers felt about it. UKCG was predominantly a sales organisation built by salespeople, trading at around £15m a year. My background was business management. In year one, we grew to around £23m. But as that was happening, I was contacted by Misco's administrators, who said they were looking to partner with the brand and asked whether we'd be interested? It was a no brainer for us. We decided to move forward, and then rebranded as Misco.

How large are you now?

We've grown from around 30 staff in 2017 to just under 100. As a rough indication, 2021 revenue will be around £61m.

To what extent do you draw on the more traditional sales and marketing techniques associated with the historic Misco business?

We've got around 50 experienced salespeople who absolutely work on the phones. But that model has changed, with people also working on WhatsApp and email. It's not about hitting call stats anymore. It's about visiting top customers and really having a great relationship with them. We're predominantly corporate and public sector, and we're pushing the guys to spend as much time with customers as much as possible.

You grew 69 per cent in fiscal 2020. What would you attribute that to?

The website has the ability for customers to log in, set specific prices for customers and see various things they probably can't see on other websites. We've got a great management team. And we've got a great enterprise team. The list goes on.

Misco in its previous incarnation went into administration in 2017. And yet, Misco 2.0 is one of the most profitable resellers in VAR 500, with net profit margins hitting nearly six per cent in calendar 2020? What would you attribute that to?

This isn't the old Misco; it's something new, with the brand of Misco behind it. There is a focus on the business at a profit level, but we're also willing to spend money to invest and take the company forward.

The pandemic, Brexit and product shortages have made for an unfamiliar trading environment. How have you coped?

The shortages have certainly affected our business. But we've controlled it well. Communication to customers has been key. We have a very strong business management team, and good relationships with our partners and distribution. So if we need to commit to deals for a set period, be it three, six, nine, 12 months, we can do that. Our sales team are also extremely good at cross selling with customers.

Where do you stand on the WFH vs office debate?

A majority of our sales floor do four days in the office and one at home. We've found they prefer the environment of being in the office with their peers. What the pandemic has brought up is mental health, and we've tried our best to help people from that side. We offer the ability for everybody to take an extended two-hour lunch every week. We've got quite a few guys who I rarely see leave their desk, but they'll make sure they go out, and as a group, they go cycling.

What lies ahead for Misco?

There are a lot of things we want to do this year. We're going to start working on frameworks. In late 2021, we built out a plan to our customers and for ourselves around sustainability, and we've got a really good function for our customers now to help them dispose of redundant IT. And we're potentially going to look at some expansion to Europe.

You also acquired the Comet brand in 2019. What are your plans for that?

We've got a massive brand in Comet - I think it was something like £1.3bn (sales) when it went down.

We just need to give it the respect it deserves. We're currently building out a new website and that should be live around July time. Comet is predominantly an online business. We won't be looking to set up stores. Right now, we're looking at a drop-ship model. We're still very early doors with Comet because Misco has grown so quickly and it's hard to move focus to both.