A new video conferencing partnership is set to ignite in 2024, providing resellers with more choice and more ways to capture more sales.
Fast-growing video conferencing manufacturer, Boom Collaboration, recently appointed Westcoast as its official UK distributor to act as a catalyst for further international sales success.
Westcoast will supply the complete Boom Collaboration range, including 4K PTZ conferencing cameras, video bars, personal devices and audio speakers to more than 5,000 resellers across the country and beyond.
Boom Collaboration was formed in 2020 by Fredrik Hörnkvist and Holli Hulett, in a bid to disrupt the sector and stand out from the crowd by creating high performance, high value advanced products. The company has big ambitions to take a major part of the UK market – with Westcoast at the forefront.
Texas-based Boom Collaboration has quickly developed an extensive conferencing portfolio and operates in 30 countries, with plans to extend to 20 more, having added 12 new territories in 2023. Its operation is underpinned by the creation of four logistics centres covering the globe.
Impressive reputation
“Westcoast provides us with the perfect platform to enter into the UK and open the door to sustained sales success for all parties and most importantly their resellers,” says Fredrik. “We want to offer something a little different both in terms of our products and how we do business. We are not another ‘me-too’ brand. 2024 is going to be a big year!”
The Boom UNO vertical video bar, MAGNA Pro 4K PTZ camera and GEMINI expandable audio innovation are some of the many devices available through Westcoast, along with the GOJO multi-camera controller. The Boom HALO video bar is the company’s latest addition, which will be launched early in 2024.
“Boom Collaboration might be a relatively new conferencing name, but the company has quickly built an impressive reputation and a very comprehensive product portfolio, which covers everything from personal workspaces to huddle rooms and large boardrooms,” says Westcoast’s UC business manager, Sam Armstrong.
“There’s lots of innovation too such as intelligent video bars, expandable wireless audio and even a user-friendly multi-camera controller to facilitate live events.
“Boom Collaboration can offer our resellers something different and it is a very welcome addition to our high calibre UC collaboration division across the UK, France and Germany. We are confident this new partnership will be a big success.
“Westcoast offers the vehicle and the platform to drive the brand deep into the UK channel through our vast reseller base, key contacts and internal expertise across sales and marketing. Working with Boom’s extensive support network and wider go-to-market strategy provides a very compelling and powerful combination.
“The UC and AV market is quite competitive but at the same time it’s developing and evolving. Covid, bring your own device (BYOD) and the working from home revolution has had a huge impact. Now organisations are looking for new ways to integrate technology especially across multiple platforms. This is one of the big advantages of Boom because it is completely agnostic rather than providing Teams or Zoom only hardware support.
“I feel there is a big opportunity for resellers working in the mid-market as well as SMB space. This is the sweet spot for us where Boom can really start to flourish.”
More choice
Sam adds that as a new brand Boom instantly creates more choice and more opportunities for resellers to clinch more business. “This is simply because they offer something different,” he says. “It’s a competitive market but new technology is always positive for the channel. It keeps legacy vendors on their toes.
“The Boom portfolio is so scalable and flexible across all room environments. This provides even more of an advantage. Many organisations have multiple room sizes and different dynamics. They need a video and audio vendor that ticks all the boxes on a universal scale.”
Sam feels Westcoast in an ideal partner for Boom and is predicting sales success over the coming year. “We have almost unrivalled channel experience with one of the largest reseller bases in the country,” he says. “We have a big SMB partner base too. Both Boom and Westcoast are looking to build long-term partnerships based on active and extensive support, rather than just one-off purchases.”
This ethos and positive outlook are shared by Holli who agrees on the importance of building long-term relationships. “We are young and fresh with new ideas, backed by years of personal experience that already makes us experts in this field,” she says. “We are not afraid to stand out, be bold, brave and loud and do things a little differently. A disrupter to take on the field.”
Industry powerhouse
Holli adds that it is about offering the highest levels of support to resellers through the distribution channel and going the extra mile with Westcoast. “We don’t want to just stay in the middle lane,” she says. “We recognise resellers have the relationship with customers. Together we can help them transition to the new world we live in. They can lean on us. We are happy to help.”
Boom aims to help plug a knowledge gap in certain areas of the market, from audio and video technology to meeting etiquette, according to Holli. “We work across all sectors of the industry from AV integrators to traditional telephony resellers and accredited partners such as Zoom and Barco,” she says. “We’re completely agnostic though and global sales continue to rise by around 45% year-on-year.
“There’s definitely a knowledge gap due to the fast transition of people working from home and an explosion in software-based solutions such as Teams and Zoom. We aim to be the piece that’s perhaps missing in the sector.”
Trusted advisor
Fredrik adds that Boom’s goal is to emphasise the vital role hardware plays to improve the meeting experience. “We are a trusted advisor about the best end points to drive the end user experience,” she says. “It’s about matching the right equipment to the right rooms and helping organisations to transition at whatever stage of the journey they are on.
“Many resellers used to sell traditional telephone systems then IP handsets, but now cloud-based full unified comms systems are taking over with video at their heart. So resellers have to adapt to maintain their revenue streams and that’s where we come in with our knowledge and expertise.
“Some resellers have to learn quickly, or they are out of the game. This is where we can help a lot who have come from the traditional ‘voice’ space. Live demos, meeting room design overviews and how to embrace the latest trends, for example.
“Our vision is based on creating better meetings. Simply. We offer future proof solutions with solid components and technology to stand the test of time. We cover all user and room size environments.”
Fredrik adds that Boom also want to show personality, fun and passion. “We are young with lots of ambition to grow,” he says. “Joining forces with a huge industry powerhouse like Westcoast will add further fuel to the fire and enable us to penetrate deep into the UK and wider international markets. This is a major step forward in our growth strategy and will ensure Boom begins to boom even more.”
