Cold calling king wants to shake up channel

article-2162940-13B7EF1A000005DC-317_634x427The founder of Vohkus has a cunning plan to “shake up the whole channel” with a new reseller operation.

David Manners became part owner and CEO of start-up reseller Sumillion which he wants to reach £50 million revenue within five to eight years.

He wants to create a “Google-like” experience for staff at the Basingstoke firm, which partners with HP, Dell, Microsoft and Lenovo and targets customers with between 300 and 3,000 users.

Vohkus rose from zero to just under £50 million revenues before selling his shares three years ago, and wants to repeat the same trick at Sumillion, which he said will turn over just a million pounds in its current financial year.

He said that the company was “ethical” and had a policy of donating 10 percent of its pre-tax profits to charity each year.

Manners is seen as a cold calling expert and likes to train new business teams. Part of his plan is to give Sumillion a reputation for being the “hardest-working company in the country”.

He said all his teams will all be experts in the art of cold calling and winning new business, he said.

Manners wants Sumillion to be a utopia of a place to work. This includes offering morning yoga sessions to giving staff the opportunity to take extended lunch breaks as long as they are going to the gym or doing some form of exercise.