Gerrit-Jan van Wieren Channel Director for Benelux and Nordics, Redstor

Redstor Ltd., a cloud data management SaaS business with technology developed in South Africa, is targeting mainland Europe as part of aggressive growth plans to treble business by 2020.

The appointment of Gerrit-Jan van Wieren as channel director for Benelux and Nordics underlines Redstor’s long-term strategy to accelerate revenue on the continent.

He is based in the Amsterdam area and aims to capitalise on the growing interest shown in Redstor in data management.

He will be looking to make rapid strides in the European data management market by adding to firm’s 350 partners.

Initially focusing on the Netherlands, the Benelux country with the largest market and highest adoption of cloud data management, he said:  “There is a large concentration of businesses and companies from all over the world around Amsterdam, Enschede, Groningen and Utrecht as well as similar technology hubs in Antwerp, Brussels and Luxembourg. “For MSPs, it is vital to select the best product for customers – and more often than not, when those customers become aware of how good a product is, they wish they’d had it earlier. We have a very good product fit and there is a lot of opportunity. My biggest challenge is to reach as many organisations as soon as possible.“

Having spent almost a decade in various roles for backup and DR companies, he brings a wealth of international sales experience to Redstor’s management team, and he is no stranger to the company.
In a previous sales position, he looked after Redstor as a customer, and he admits the opportunity to renew his acquaintance with staff was a major influence in his decision to join the company.

He said: “I knew what Redstor was like to work with and that stayed with me. The people I worked with are still here and I trust them. I also think I can bring something to the table when it comes to international expansion.”

Chris Sigley, sales director, Redstor, said: “We are very excited to have GJ join at such a significant time. In the last year we have grown our cloud data management offering by more than 30% internationally. We’ve gained numerous relationships with organisations, who are recognising great value in Redstor’s pioneering cloud data management service. GJ’s wealth of experience will be invaluable as we target aggressive growth in mainland Europe.”