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"Everyone in the channel can take small steps" - Intec Microsystems' Cantwell outlines B Corp plans

Channel veteran has ambitious growth plans for the distributor which he says has been a secret in the distribution world for many years, but is keen to take a more ethical approach

With plans to smash through the £100m revenue barrier in the next 12 months, Alan Cantwell (pictured) is on a mission to raise the profile of his latest private equity-backed venture - Birmingham-based distributor Intec Microsystems.

Cantwell is working with Intec's PE majority owner Chiltern Capital, alongside the existing management team, to grow the business and get the company on the channel map. But he is also determined to secure a B Corp accreditation in the next two years.

Speaking to CRN, Cantwell said Intec was too good an opportunity to pass up, and he is planning to expand the distributor's vendor stable and re-engage with the thousands of resellers that may have slipped off its radar.

"We have a core of 600-700 clients that we sell to each month, but we have nearly 4,000 clients that for whatever reason are not engaging with us, but are still engaging with someone," he said. "It is our job to reach out to them and find out why, and work out how we can re-engage with them."

'A more ethical approach to business'

Crucially, he said the way he wants to grow the business is going to be a "little more challenging" than when he headed up reseller Selection Services, a company he sold in 2011; because companies now need to take a more ethical approach to business, particularly when it comes to sustainability.

"Life has changed since ISO9000 and Investors in People - both of which are still important foundations for any business - but we have a duty to be ethical in our approach to business.," he said. "Becoming a B Corp should be one of the core pillars for every business going forward and we can all take small steps to a more sustainable way of doing business.

"I genuinely believe people that take this seriously will be more profitable, because clients and partners will be more engaged, and we can all look for cleverer and smarter ways of working together."

Cantwell said the journey to B Corp won't be quick or easy.

"It's a long journey, and it is something that I'm only just starting to learn about. We are a sensible company and already recycle and do the stuff that most people already do, but we are sending out around 300 parcels a day for example, is there something better that we can do?

"The plan is to challenge everything we do with a view to doing it in a way that is better for the environment, but which still allows us to achieve our growth aims," Cantwell explained. "We can't do everything at once, but by breaking it into small manageable chunks, I will get to my end target and the profits will come."