Young IT business expects to be at 29 employees by end of year; moving to larger quarters

LACONIA — Five years ago, Ryan Barton was operating a one-man information technology business, helping a few businesses and a private school. He had a vision of something larger, though, an idea for a company that would offer state-of-the-art expertise and training for companies looking to modernize operations. Within a month's time, he hired his first through fourth employee, a defining period which, in retrospect, launched Mainstay Technologies on the path to rapid growth.

That growth was noted by Inc. Magazine, which recently listed Mainstay as company number 1,739 on its annual list of the 5,000 fastest-growing U.S. companies. According to the magazine, Mainstay's 2011 revenue of $2.5-million had grown 164-percent over 2008, and that the company had added 14 jobs, for a total of 19, in the same period.

The growth has kept pace through 2012, as several more employees have been hired. Barton expects to employ as many as 29 be the end of the calendar year.

Another symbol of its success, Mainstay had outgrown its space on New Salem Street, on the same property where Barton also operates Landmark Self-Storage, a company his father Dwight founded. So, as Barton announced recently, he has entered into an agreement to lease, and eventually purchase, the building that formerly housed the Granite State Glass headquarters on Route 3 in Belmont.

Mainstay will remain in Laconia for about two more months as the Belmont property is renovated.

"We're really gratified to be able to take a landmark building and give it new life," said Barton.

Once Barton and company move in, they'll enjoy about 6,000-square-feet of office space, more than double the size the company currently fills in Laconia. The rest of the building, some 14,000-square-feet, will serve as a warehouse for the company and as additional storage for Landmark. Meanwhile the space on New Salem Street in Laconia, which Mainstay plans to soon vacate, will be rented out, perhaps in something of a business incubator project that Barton said is still in development.

Since Mainstay's day one, Barton's business concept has remained the same: offer the services of a large IT department to companies, municipalities or organizations that might only be able to afford to hire one or two network professionals. "Providing IT service has really resonated with the market in New Hampshire," Barton said. He said his company's growth has been "natural," meaning that he hires new network engineers as more clients come on board. At the same time, having more employees opens the door for greater specialization among the staff, translating to a wider and higher quality of services available to customers. "We provide IT services to help people grow," Barton said. "Our growth is a direct measure of how well we do that."

Mainstay's clients typically have between 10 and 150 employees, and most of their clients are located within an hour's drive from Laconia. The company also operates a satellite location in Manchester and sees the southern part of the state as an area of further potential growth.

As the company grows, Barton said a challenge for him is to maintain the company's culture, which he said is "very important to us." He described that culture as being collaborative, customer-focused and dedicated to the growth and development of individual employees. When selecting new hires, Barton looks for candidates who are "passionate about technology and customer service." He'd rather hire a customer-oriented person whose technical knowledge might be slightly behind the curve rather than a premier technology expert who lacks interpersonal skills. He can train employees to bring them up-to-date on the latest technology; he can't rectify and employee who cares little about clients.

"It's really a people-centered service," explained Ryan Robinson, director of business development. He often hears from clients surprised that their network engineers are more personable and friendly than the stereotypical "computer geek."

What does the future hold for Mainstay? Barton said more of the same: continue the focus on helping customers grow their business, hire more employees as needed to serve customers. "What we see is a continued growth in the area of serving our customers better," he said. "We see creating a lot more jobs."

CAPTION for MAINSTAY in AA:

Mainstay Technology founder Ryan Barton, at left, and director of business development Ryan Robinson, stand in front of the eight year-old company's future headquarters on Route 3 in Belmont. The information technology company, currently located in Laconia, has been growing at a rapid pace. (Laconia Daily Sun photo/Adam Drapcho)