Both the Trustmarque and Ultima names will be retained post merger, the enlarged company’s CEO revealed as he said his priority is for it to “feel like one company”.
Talking to IT Channel Oxygen, Simon Williams said the decision reflects how both brands are nearly 40 years old and have “very strong brand identities”.
Staff were informed its new name will be ‘Trustmarque Ultima’ on 23 April, with a full rebrand set to be unveiled at its Fusion Live event on 17 September.
The decision contrasts with that made by international peer SoftwareOne, which last week dropped ‘Crayon’ from its name following their union last July.
“Stronger, brighter, more vibrant jigsaw”
The Trustmarque-Ultima deal – which was exclusively revealed by IT Channel Oxygen – was classed as a merger, with the duo’s respective private-equity backers – One Equity Partners and Apse Capital – both taking a “merger-like” stake in the enlarged company.
Boasting combined pro-forma gross sales of £742m (enough to rank it 6th in Oxygen 250 2026), Trustmarque Ultima serves around 3,000 customers from offices in Reading, London, York and Hamilton.
Williams said the decision to retain both names was a nod not only to customers and the market but also its 1,000 employees.
“There’s a recognition both names have a slightly different brand awareness in the market, but together they represent a new company that’s built on the foundation of a merger,” Williams added.
“There’s obviously a greater level of brand awareness for Trustmarque, just based on size. It’s got a stronger public sector heritage and very senior engagement with a lot of the partners, whether that’s Microsoft, Cisco, IBM or Hitachi Vantara.
“Ultima is probably more dynamic, more agile.
“So one is more stable and solid, with that trusted delivery, and the other is more innovative – that’s the feedback we got from the market.
“I talk about this jigsaw. We have a stronger, brighter, more vibrant jigsaw, because the pieces that were missing in one were in the other.
“This is the start of a transformation journey. We’ve got a name. We now need to build a logo, do brand guidelines, the merchandising, website, domain name, go to market and collateral campaign.”
“I want it to feel like one company”
Asked about the integration, Williams said both businesses have now moved their managed services practices onto ServiceNow.
Mirroring the tactics of peers including Computacenter and Advania, Williams has moved to appoint executives to head up the enlarged company’s combined product resale, managed services, and professional services capabilities, respectively.
“I want it to feel like it’s one company now,” he said.
“We’ve now got twice as many people, so we can deliver a lot more to customers.
“There are Trustmarque sales people going, ‘oh, the practices in Ultima are much better’. Then there are Ultima sales people going, ‘ah, the practices in Trustmarque are much better’. They’re both going, ‘oh no, they’re really good’… ‘no, they’re really good’ – and it’s lovely to see people working together to take more stuff to market.
“Touch wood, the merger has gone really well, and from a cultural integration perspective, we haven’t had any attrition.”
The name choice wasn’t taken lightly, Williams stressed.
“It was a very conscious decision. We did spend a lot of time on it,” he said.
“Both companies have a very strong history. Both companies are nearly 40 years old in the market. Both companies have a very strong brand awareness in the market, loyal customers, loyal partner relationships and loyal employees.”
“Lots of people have spent 10, 15, 20 years in both companies, and that sense of identity is really important.
“People have a sense of identity. It’s not just the market; it’s also our people.”
Doug Woodburn is editor of IT Channel Oxygen
