Member Article

Red Maple grows by shedding jargon

An IT firm which supports remote working entrepreneurs and SMEs is leading by example by recording rapid growth despite having a garden shed as an HQ and a team employed entirely from home.

Red Maple, which is officially headquartered in company founder Mike Proud’s back garden on Tyneside, is set to expand as demand grows for its mobile working technology and support services.

The company is currently looking to increase its headcount and spread its reach across the North of England after picking up a string of new clients.

The firm was launched in 2006 with a strong focus on being environmentally friendly and so, having cut out the need for staff to commute to work, the company is also investing in a fleet of electric vehicles for onsite visits to clients.

Under the Red Maple umbrella, Mr Proud has completed major IT contracts in London, Dublin and Hong Kong and most recently was involved in a number of high profile projects with BT.

Red Maple, which prides itself on being a jargon-free IT company, offers proactive IT Support with 24/7 monitoring as standard, and a range of solutions and resources to suit businesses small and large, in the UK and Europe.

The company’s recent growth has been aided by the rise in the number of unemployed people looking to start their own ventures from home.

At the same time, Red Maple has seen growing demand from larger clients that have been let down by former service suppliers – often because of cutbacks in staff and infrastructure costs among many struggling IT businesses.

Speaking from his garden shed, Mr Proud said: “If you’re going to sell something like mobile working, it makes sense to use it to its full potential – and the actual benefit is visible to the client.

“With everyone working from home, we can cut out the road miles from commuting to an office, and to a client site. And for those visits to client sites, we’re looking to trial the range of electric vehicles that are now coming out. We’re also working on a deal with a solar panel provider to offer staff discounts to those staff that can use it.

“As we get busier, it makes sense to ensure we have time and money set aside for the team. If we can gain from new technologies and skills, it makes sense to pass that on to businesses within the North East and further afield, as well as providing employment opportunities.”

As well as catering for SMEs and entrepreneurs, Red Maple is often enlisted to assist on larger IT projects. Most recently the firm was called in to provide equipment at the last minute for the IT system behind the second Tyne Tunnel just two hours before it was scheduled to open.

It is currently in the process of completing another project of a similar scale which could be worth up to £120,000 to the business.

For more information on Red Maple, visit: www.red-maple.co.uk.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Harvey and Hugo .