Had the opportunity to kick off our British Awards event with a chat with Alex Tatham. In many ways his distribution is like a bellwether for the channel. As the leading distributor in the UK, his insight is valuable.
The perfect storm… Brexit then the pandemic then the supply chain challenge. The company grew by 10% in 2021 over 2020 and that year it grew by 30%. Judging from the numbers, it seems the UK IT industry is doing very well.
That said, what is in store for 2022? Alex is optimistic that it will keep on growing. It probably depends on the sector and the type of channel partner but the opportunities are there if you follow the right trends and are open to thinking outside of the box.
MSPs and Cloud are definitely on the up. Work from anywhere has taken root. Business will never be the same as pre-pandemic. The race continues as companies double down on digital transformation. Supply for some brands are now on an eight month wait. It’s unclear when supply will actually catch up to demand but vendors are busy looking for solutions. In the meantime, the scarcity should help push margins up.
The employees at Westcoast are back in the office for the most part and Alex likes it that way. The latest variant of COVID may change the regulations so we will have to wait and see.
Alex also won Britain’s Reseller Choice for Best Distributor 2021!Â
Check out my interview with Alex to get his take on 2022.
