History
PC World was founded in November 1991, when a company called the Vision Technology Group Ltd, founded by Jan Murray, opened the first PCW Superstore in Croydon.
The 24,000 square foot store specialised in the sale of PCs and computer related products. With PC ownership just beginning to take off, the concept soon proved popular and a second 23,000 square foot store was opened the following year at the Lakeside Retail Park in West Thurrock.
Two further stores followed, at Brentford and Staples Corner in north London. At that point, in 1993, Vision Technology Group struck a deal to sell its four PC World Superstores to the Dixons Group plc (DSG).
Throughout the 1990s DSG continued to expand the PC World portfolio of stores rapidly. In 1996 it acquired DN Computer Services plc, a direct computer reseller business, operating out of Heywood in Lancashire.
The birth of PC World Business
This gave DSG the infrastructure it needed to launch PC World Business Direct in September 1997 - a new business-to-business IT mail order service incorporating the brand strength of PCW and the sector expertise of DSG. A fully functional transactional website - www.pcwb.com - followed in 1999.
In March 2001, as PC World Business, the company moved into a brand new £13 million headquarters building and Operations Centre in Bury, Lancashire to meet the growth in demand from the business market.
Recent achievements
In October 2001 PC World Business was accepted to become an accredited GCat (Government Catalogue for IT supply) Prime Contractor to the Public Sector.
In May 2002 PC World Business won two major multi-million pound contracts as a lead supplier and enabler of the Scottish Parliament's (The Scottish Executive) new ‘Digital Inclusion Programme’ aimed at giving every individual in Scotland better access to online services.
Also in 2002 the group acquired Genesis Communications - a specialist Business Telecoms reseller - to strengthen its business-to-business offering.
PC World Business also strengthened its product offering in 2003, with the introduction of a new finance package called SmartPlan. This product, a unique offering in the UK, allows businesses to spread the cost of their larger IT purchases in the form of a lease agreement.
In June 2004 Micro Warehouse UK became a division of PC World Business, following the acquisition of the UK Operations of WHSU Inc. and WHSU International Inc. (formerly known as Micro Warehouse Inc. and Micro Warehouse International Inc. respectively) by PC World Business' parent company.
Micro Warehouse is one of the UK's largest and longest established direct resellers of branded IT products and services to business. Commenting on the acquisition, Simon Turner, Managing Director of PC World Group said "This is an important deal that will further consolidate our position in the B2B technology market in the UK. The Micro Warehouse business will add scale to our unique combination of direct selling, national network of Business Centres and cutting edge value added services".
