Pax8 Launches European Cloud Distribution Bid With Wirehive Acquisition

‘I don’t believe anyone is delivering on PSA integrations the way Pax8 intends to,’ says Pax8 Chief Revenue Officer Nick Heddy of the company’s entry into the European Union.

Pax8 is launching an expansion into the European Union with the acquisition of a U.K.-based consultancy, as the Wingman experience prepares to go toe to toe with about 40 other distributors for dominance in the old world, company executives told CRN.

“We gave a lot of thought to how we came into the market,” Pax8 Chief Revenue Officer Nick Heddy told CRN. “A lot of times you see these big, bad American companies come in to the EU and say, ‘We’re here. You’re welcome.’ We are not wanting to take that strategy.”

Instead, the Greenwood Village, Colo.-based distributor bought a 32-person cloud consultancy, Wirehive, which is based in the city of Bristol in southwest England. The city—which is the rumored home of legendary graffiti artist Banksy—has been Wirehive’s headquarters for 12 years.

“They’ve got an amazing business focused on digital agencies. And they also have indirect provider status with Microsoft,” Heddy said. “So it’s very complementary to the pro services that we’re doing here and in North America. With that authorization we can execute on our business model that we have been refining here and expanded to the EU.”

Much like its climb in the U.S., Pax8 will face off against some familiar foes such as Ingram Micro and Tech Data, as well as some local competition in the form of companies such as Also and Giacom. Heddy said Pax8 is ready for the challenge.

“I don’t believe anyone is delivering on PSA integrations the way Pax8 intends to,” he said.

Added Pax8 Vice President of Communications Amanda Lee: “Our technology is very unique. Partners in the U.K. market are very hungry for Pax8 and have been waiting for Pax8.”

She said the company will soon launch Pax8 UK. While a leadership team has not yet been finalized, Heddy said it will likely follow the model of other overseas expansions with a local C-suite that operates on behalf of the parent company in that region.

Brexit, the breakup of the U.K. with the EU, does muddy the waters somewhat in terms of the mechanics of expanding throughout the continent, said Heddy.

“What I’m more focused on is what action is Microsoft taking and that’s TBD,” he said. “So now that Brexit is official, we’re waiting for word from Microsoft about how they are going to handle it because it is a delicate situation. Everyone’s got customers and partners operating in lots of different countries. How are you going to begin to separate those, if that is part of the strategy? But right now, we have access to all the EU, and we can sell to all of the EU.”

Heddy called Wirehive and its CEO, Robert Belgrave, “a great culture fit” with Pax8.

“Our very first call with Robert was on May 4 of 2020, and he had a Chewbacca mask on, and that could have gone incredibly well or incredibly wrong,” he said. “It’s saying, ‘Hey, we are a great culture fit, guys.’ And so I think it was just meant to be.”

Belgrave heaped praise on his new corporate owners in a statement, echoing what Heddy said about the values both companies have in common.

“The values, culture and synergies between Pax8 and Wirehive are strong as we have a common goal to help businesses modernize with cloud technology,” he said. “This acquisition will prove to be transformative. With Pax8, we can grow and scale at a faster rate while optimizing business operations and expanding opportunities to our customers.”