Keltec eyeing double-digit growth spurt

Keltec is forecasting double-digit rises in the top and bottom lines for 2012 despite the slowdown in project sign-offs and parting company with one-time strategic vendor Oracle.

The privately owned services-based reseller closed 2011 with sales of £17.1m, up 24 per cent on the previous year, and profit before tax (PBT) up 84 per cent to £500,000.

It has now elevated sales and marketing director Simon Pemberton to MD - the first time the role has been filled in seven years - and is targeting PBT growth of 20 per cent on sales of £19.5m.

"There is a decline or [at best a] minimal increase in customer spend but we have such small market share of the UK that the opportunity and challenge is to win net new customers," Pemberton told The Register.

Operations are split between managed and support services which accounted for 74 per cent of gross margin in 2011, with the infrastructure and professional services unit representing 20 per cent and software licensing six per cent.

HP and Oracle made up the major hardware partners in Keltec's infrastructure and professional service biz, but it is not alone in pulling back from Oracle to forge closer links with IBM.

"Oracle's acquisition [of Sun Microsystems] has made it difficult to run that business. Certainly we did not find them to be as channel-centric an organisation as Sun were," said Pemberton.

A key change was the shift in the services programme which meant that corporate and larger mid-market customer contract renewals were taken directly by Oracle.

"We couldn't sell them or manage contracts on behalf of customers. We need to invest our time more smartly in companies that are more channel friendly," said Pemberton.

El Reg was awaiting comment from Oracle at the time of writing. ®