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Staples you know, but Sparxent is new.
When the IT business gets slow at huge companies, vendors "discover" the small business market. Whether that's the reason in full or part, now seems to be a golden time for small businesses that need IT support, because the line of vendors ready to help keeps getting longer.
Let's talk about two of those new entrants into the market. First, focusing on the small end of the small business spectrum, is Staples (the office supply giant) and its new Staples Network Services. Second is Sparxent, a company acquiring regional IT providers to focus on servicing companies with from 200 to 2000 employees.
Staples has long sold technology (computers, laptops, printers etc.) and now wants to help you better manage those. As part of its Staples Business Advantage program, it just announced Staples Network Services. The target is companies with 20-250 employees. The current customer profile in the soft launch prior to the official launch on Sept. 24 has been companies with about 40 employees, but no full time IT person. There are about 8 million small businesses in the U.S. with 25 or fewer employees, so this market can certainly absorb another big player.
Continued
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