Startup VAR Sparxent Set On Acquisition Path

Sparxent, a start-up company with ambitions of becoming a "super VAR," has completed its acquisition of NetworkD, a Newport Beach, Calif., solution provider, and has other VAR acquisition deals in the works in the U.S. and Europe.

Sparxent is targeting its hardware, software and IT consulting services to mid-market customers, those generally with between 500 and 5,000 employees, said Steve DeWindt, president and CEO of the new Salt Lake City company. Systems management and help desk services will be Sparxent's core focus with business intelligence (for analyzing systems management data) and security services to follow.

The company is the brainchild of DeWindt, who previously co-founded BlueRoads, was co-president of Computer 2000 AG, and served as director of worldwide reseller sales at Intel; and Dave Taylor, Sparxent's chief marketing officer, who was on the original management team at LANDesk Software and also held positions at Intel and Microsoft.

Monday Sparxent announced that it had completed the NetworkD acquisition for an undisclosed amount. NetworkD is LANDesk's largest reseller. LANDesk, which was acquired by Avocent in 2006, develops network client management and security software. NetworkD's founder and CEO, Ashley Leonard, is serving as Sparxent's chairman.

Sparxent also disclosed that it has a deal to acquire Arbyte Group, an IT service provider based in Moscow, Russia, that has operations in that country and Ukraine. The NetworkD and Arbyte acquisitions will give Sparxent total sales of about $75 million, according to Taylor.

Mid-market companies looking for IT assistance are often forced to choose between VARs that have deep experience with a single IT vendor and its products, and those that offer a broad range of technology products from multiple vendors, but are thin in the services department, DeWindt said. The CEO said Sparxent's goal is to provide the kind of services to the midmarket that IBM Global Services or Accenture offer for large corporations.

In addition to its current acquisitions, Sparxent plans to buy additional solution providers in 2009 and beyond, including managed service providers, hosting service companies and VARs whose expertise and geographic coverage fit Sparxent's expansion plans. The company is also building up its in-house software development capabilities, Taylor said.

Sparxent's current and potential acquisitions will result in the company's having relationships with a range of IT hardware and software manufacturers, including BMC, CA, Cisco, EMC, Hewlett-Packard, Juniper Networks, LANDesk and Microsoft, according to the company.