Softcat cuts ribbon on Glasgow office

Reseller expects about 30 staff to work in the new base by the end of the year

Softcat claims to be one of "very few" British resellers investing significantly in the Scottish market as it opens up its first office in the country in Glasgow.

The Marlow-headquartered reseller has other UK offices in London, Manchester, Bristol and Leeds and opens its first Scottish base today.

Some 14 staff members - six existing Softcat staff and eight new recruits - are based in the Glasgow branch, and the reseller hopes this number will more than double by the end of the year. The team has been stationed in the city since January in a serviced office and today marks its first day in its long-term home.

The company cited access to a large pool of graduates and other potential recruits as one of the main perks of being based in Glasgow, as well as access to a wider set of customers.

"This move to Scotland has been on the cards for some time with an aim to significantly develop and grow our relationship with both existing and new clients based in Scotland," said Jamie Burke, Softcat's sales director.

"We have over 500 long-standing clients in Scotland already, but like all customers, they and other businesses like to deal with local people, so it's important for us to have a presence in Scotland staffed largely by 'home-grown' employees.

"Very few UK resellers have made this level of investment to grow their business up here in Scotland. We're taking a bold, calculated approach and making a significant commitment from the word go - with a strong customer base up here already it makes sense for us at this stage.

"Furthermore, some of our key business partners such as Microsoft, HP, Dell and Cisco have been telling us for some time that there is a huge potential for Softcat to make a real impact in Scotland as a direct result of our unwavering focus on staff and customer satisfaction."