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Logicalis CEO reveals blueprint for gobbled 2e2 Euro biz

Foothold in mainland Europe and consulting gigs

Logicalis CEO Ian Cook says his biz will use the IT Service Management (ITSM) unit in the Dutch operation acquired from 2e2 as a consulting "centre of excellence" for the entire group.

Integrator Logicalis - owned by Datatec - yesterday coughed up €24m for 2e2's businesses in Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland and the Channel Islands. Combined these four operations - employing 480 staff - had a turnover of $150m in calendar 2012 and made an EBITDA of $8m.

Previously Logicalis served customers in Ireland, Jersey and Guernsey from the UK, and it had no customers in Spain nor in the Netherlands.

Cook told us setting up a foothold in mainland Europe has always been a strategic priority.

"We used to have a small operation in Europe and now have a significant one," he told The Channel.

2e2's IBM system integration businesses in Spain and Ireland continue to trade under the Morse brand, a firm it acquired in 2010 but both will be rebranded in the near future. The business in Spain will be vital for Logicalis' Latin American business, claimed Cook, as it enables the integrator to sell to Spanish customers across the continent.

The deal package also includes a managed service unit in the Channel Islands and a Dutch consulting outfit, both under the 2e2 banner but soon to receive a name change.

"This consulting business specialising in ITSM can be become a centre of excellence across the organisation, we'll roll that into our managed services portfolio," said Cook.

He said his company will talk to the partners of vendors, such as Cisco, in the UK about expanding the contract overseas and is looking at cross-selling services.

On top of the 480 2e2 overseas workers joining Logicalis, another 60 to 70 2e2ers in the UK that ran managed services for Marks & Spencer have transferred along with the contract.

The speed of 2e2's collapse in the UK - tens subsidiaries went into administration back in Janaury - left some customers scrambling for alternative suppliers.

The Euro operations and those in the Channel Islands were unaffected by the administration process, but customers were aware of issues in the UK.

Cook said he suspected those customers were not impacted by the downfall: "Management [at administrator FTI Consulting] assured us that there's been no disruption."

The plan is to bring out the big guns - senior bosses at Logicalis - to address any concerns clients may have. ®

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