5. Kelway - £366.9m

The City-based firm continued on the high-growth path in its 2012 fiscal year, with revenues expanding through both organic and acquisitive means.

Kelway UK’s annual accounts reveal that revenues surged more than £100m in the year to 31 March, rising from £244.4m to £350m. The acquisition of £40m-plus outfit ISC Networks in late 2010 will doubtless have helped swell the top line. Operating profit rose 41 per cent in FY12 to £11.9m, putting margins at 3.4 per cent.

The VAR’s turnover is set to be further boosted by the acquisition in April of Belfast-based reseller Business and Scientific Services, which turned over £16.5m in the 2011 calendar year. The deal gives Kelway Microsoft Large Account Reseller status, which it claims can benefit its operations across the whole of the EU.

Like most, if not all, of its rivals, Kelway also laid down a marker in the cloud services provision space last year, with the launch of its ServiceWorks packaged offerings. The initial suite included compute, mail and backup services, with technologies including desktop-as-a-service, unified communications and video set to be added soon.

Recruitment has also been a focus in recent months, with the launch of the Kelway Academy, designed to recruit 16 junior sales staff annually and reduce the reseller’s reliance on head-hunting experienced salespeople.