InfocomIdeas Leaps Into Wireless Sector

Francois Lapierre and Michael Lambidonis had been moonlighting in Quebec as independent IT consultants since 1999 when the two network engineers started a part time business called InfocomIdeas. Lapierre says it was merely a hobby for their spare time --- until Lambidonis was laid off from his job at a wireless company. As a result, Lapierre then made the bold decision to leave his job as director of consulting services at CGI, one of the largest system integrators in North America, and to join Lambidonis in building that hobby into a real solution provider business.

"It was a dream to have our own company," Lapierre said. "People thought I was crazy. I had a steady job, of course, but the desire outweighed the security blanket."

The two started InfocomIdeas as a full-time business in February. The company, based in Montreal, primarily offers networking and wireless technology consulting and integration services for small and midsize businesses. The startup was personally funded by its two co-founders. "We started with the bare minimum, with one server in our basement," Lapierre said. "We didn't want to go for venture capital support because we didn't want any strings attached or people telling us how to run our company."

InfocomIdeas doesn't resell a lot of product, however, because it can't seem to attract attention from the top network vendors. "I guess you could say they're blowing us off. It's not easy getting into those partner programs," Lapierre said.

So, InfocomIdeas turned to Tech Data for support and product inventory, and the company is now in full gear. Lapierre said the company already has a few contracts, thanks to a strong list of contacts in the wireless and telecom industry. Currently, Lapierre and Lambidonis are the solution provider's only full time staff members. But Lapierre said the goal is to add more full-time staff members this year and remain cash-flow positive.

To that end, InfocomIdeas is promoting what it calls "The Quebec Advantage." Not only is the Canadian province an underserved market for wireless and networking solutions, which greatly benefits InfocomIdeas, but the Canadian dollar is competitive compared to the U.S. dollar, allowing the solution provider to offer its services to U.S. clients for a cheaper price than many other VARs. "We can be a lot less expensive when we engage U.S. customers, and that's a big help for us," Lapierre said. "There's not a lot of competition here in Montreal. There's been a brain drain because many IT professionals from Canada move down to the U.S. because they can get better salaries."

Lapierre, however, says he and Lambidonis are just fine in their native Quebec.

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