High Profile

Russell Lux, Managing Director of LuxTech

Russell LUX profiles the company he founded in 2001 which now employs over 40 staff, from its new offices in Camden. Lux has aggressive plans to double the turnover of its business again in the next 12 months with a longer-term target of achieving an £18 million business within the next two years.

“LuxTech is a leading reseller of converged IT and telephony solutions to the SME and corporate market. Based in London, we offer a complete outsourced solution including IT equipment and network provisioning, remote monitoring and diagnostics, IT consultancy and project management and website design. LuxTech has developed a prestigious client base including Travelex, Graff Diamonds, M & C Saatchi and Bauer Publishing.”

Business challenges

From the outset LuxTech recognised the need to differentiate themselves from their competitors. In a market where similar products and services are available from a large number of suppliers it can be very difficult to establish truly unique selling points. Realising that their clients were choosing LuxTech over other providers because of their genuine enthusiasm and personality, this soon developed into a set of core values and company culture that quickly spread throughout the business.

As a rapidly growing company, finding the right people for LuxTech presented a key challenge. The technical staff had to be able to talk to customers using clear, understandable language whilst also demonstrating a high degree of technical knowledge. Having now found the right staff, the resulting team offer clients a fresh approach to IT support with many of the conventional hurdles removed.

Vendor Partnerships

LuxTech supply a full range of hardware and software solutions from many vendors including:

Microsoft	Convergence
Apple	Panasonic
HP	Enterasys
Dell	Avaya
Networks	First Alcatel
Easynet	BT
Swyx	Kerio
Cisco	Fortinet

LuxTech’s acquisition and business growth strategy is based around ‘convergence’.

“We have recognised that convergence can bring major business benefits to the SME sector. SMEs are in business to make money, not buy technology for technology’s sake, SMEs are constantly trying to find ways in which they can improve their operational efficiency, increase their profitability and reduce their costs. Every business in this sector has a very tight budget and they scrutinise every investment more and more carefully to ensure that they are getting the very best value. This is particularly true when it comes to telephone systems and corporate infrastructure where choice is plentiful, and technology moves so quickly that traditional telephony technologies are already becoming obsolete.

“Convergence has provided a fantastic opportunity for LuxTech, to offer genuine, valueadded solutions, which can demonstrate real business benefits to existing customers and allow the company to develop new solutions for new clients in new markets. With this approach I believe that everyone wins, the customer gets a far more cost-effective solution and the reseller gets higher margins and more opportunity to develop long-term business relationships.

LuxTech has launched in 2006 their first converged solution for a specific vertical market having developed the ‘Integrated Office’, a solution that assists professional services organisations such as legal practices and accountants maximise their fee earning revenue.”

Business Outlook and Plans

“2006 has been a very exciting and successful year for the company,” says Lux, “Not only has the business been appointed a Gold partner by both Microsoft and Easynet, we have also seen revenues double in size from £2.2 million in 2004/5 to £4.5 million.

“In 2006 LuxTech also made our acquisition and growth intentions clear by acquiring the assets, employees and customer contracts of Apple technology specialist Topology UK Ltd. This deal extended the reach and capability of LuxTech’s convergence business into the publishing and creative sector; a market that has been a traditional stronghold for Apple Mac products.

The new LuxTech Office in Camden

LuxTech can now support services to all business sectors regardless of their technology platform. This deal complements the acquisition that LuxTech made in 2005 of Voice specialist, Communications Support Services Ltd.”

Market Observations

Lux sees convergence as the future for business communications and believes that resellers that stick to either or data or traditional voice will lose out, both in revenue and in gaining valuable experience of a new lucrative growing market.

“The winds of change are blowing, traditional voice vendors are in decline and their resellers are working from smaller and smaller margins. The message is getting through, end-users are beginning to recognise the cost and efficiency benefits that they can gain running their voice, image, and data applications over a single network that will be supplied and supported by one supplier.”