European reseller giant Bechtle breaks €3bn revenue mark

Germany-based outfit's 2016 sales leap by 9.3 per cent

Pan-European reseller giant Bechtle has smashed the €3bn revenue mark, thanks to a stellar year for the firm's domestic German operations.

Bechtle's preliminary financial results for its fiscal 2016 year saw the firm's top line swell by 9.3 per cent from €2.8bn in 2015 to approximately €3.1bn.

Earnings before tax (EBT) also rose by 12 per cent from €129.4m reported last year to an expected €145m, while EBT margins saw a small boost, rising from 4.6 per cent to 4.7 per cent.

According to Bechtle, growth was driven by a strong performance from its VAR unit - known as the IT system house business - in its German homeland.

"The past fiscal year has proven Bechtle's aptitude for growth yet once again. We were able to continue our upward trajectory unabated while, at the same time, investing in numerous future-oriented projects. These impressive figures underscore Bechtle's position as a leading German IT company," said Thomas Olemotz, chairman of the board at Bechtle.

Bechtle will be publishing its full audited financial results for the 2016 fiscal year on 16 March.

The Neckarsulm-based VAR's Q3 ending September last year also saw domestic sales swell. German revenues rose by 5.8 per cent year on year to €519.6m, while overseas sales enjoyed a 7.9 per cent lift to €210.4m.

Bechtle has meanwhile made moves to bolster its operations outside its home country. The firm bought €30m Swiss VAE Steffen Informatik in June last year to give its cloud, outsourcing and services business a boost.

The VAR was also among the first EMEA partners to be graced with Titanium Black partner status by recently merged Dell EMC. The exclusive partner tier was also awarded to Computacenter and Nordic giant Atea.