Meet Chris Rose of Ariento in Century City and Long Beach

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chris Rose.

Chris, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
The concept of Ariento started while I was still in the Marine Corps during a deployment to the Republic of Georgia (near Russia). I was talking with a fellow Marine, Robert (who became the first employee of Ariento several years later), whose parents owned a nail salon in Santa Monica, and it hit me that small business owners aren’t so different that infantry battalions. I had grown up working for small family businesses and knew that they 1. were desperate for good IT service people 2. always had trouble finding it and 3. were extremely vulnerable from a cyber security standpoint. A few years later, Ariento was born.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has not been a smooth ride. I knew it was going to be hard, but I really had no idea. Branding/positioning has been probably our most consistent challenge. We started as “Cybersecurity for the Small Business” but were too early to that market and found that many small business owners considered that a big business problem and didn’t want to pay a separate company from their IT service provider (nor did they want more than one point of contact for IT). We now compete in both the cyber security space with our Cyber Lookout service and the IT Services space with our Secure Office and Secure Workstation products that are all inclusive IT services and cyber security (Cyber Lookout). Resource constraints are another consistent challenge, but overall we’ve been very fortunate to have great people leave promising, well-paying careers to come work with us for little to no salary: Andrew Ro, Robert Cao, Dan Baldini, Aaron Hanke and Kehlee Rose to name a few. They have been force multipliers that have allowed us to grow fast. I would also be remiss if I didn’t point out the financial support that my wife (who has a great career as a cyber security consultant for a Fortune 500 company) has provided in addition to my friends (George and Mike Rosenfeld at Safari Cycle) and close family (Stann and Michelle Rose) that have invested in/donated to the business. Starting a business is definitely not something you can do alone and my support network has been incredible beyond even what I could have imagined.

Please tell us about Ariento.
Ariento provides secure technology solutions for small businesses and individuals. Specifically, we offer cyber security and IT consulting and managed services to businesses from 1-25 computer users. We are a service disabled veteran owned company made up of veterans with 30+ years of experience doing cyber security and IT at the highest levels in the name of national security. I am most proud of the fact that we hire underutilized veterans who may not have the job prospects they should coming out of the military, and put them back in a place where they can successfully exhibit their skill set they picked up in the military. We give back a percentage of every subscription we sell to veteran charities. We are known for our 3 managed service products:

Cyber Lookout (Personal, Pro, and Office Versions)
Secure Workstation with Cyber Lookout and IT Service Support
Secure Office with cyber Lookout and IT Service Support

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Being on the mound (baseball pitcher) or on the wing (soccer) – BTW I played with my best friend and now business partner, Dan Baldini. Also, house boating vacations to Lake Shasta with close friends and family.

Pricing:

• Cyber Lookout Personal – $49.99 per month
• Cyber Lookout Pro – $59.99 per month
• Cyber Lookout Office – Call for a quote
• Secure Workstation with Cyber Lookout Pro & IT Service Package (Cloud or Comes with 30 month computer lease) – $149.99 per month
• Secure Office (1-25 computers) with Cyber Lookout & IT Services Package – Call for a quote

Contact Info:

• Website: www.ariento.com
• Phone: 323-741-1106
• Email: [email protected]
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ArientoInc/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/ArientoCyber
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/ariento-los-angeles
• Other: https://www.linkedin.com/company-beta/10542583

Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.