12 SHI International

Revenue: £325m (0%)

Net profit: NA Staff: 278

You don't need a three-initialled name to become a successful global reseller behemoth, but judging from the success of CDW, WWT and this New Jersey-based powerhouse, it helps. The US' largest Minority and Women-Owned company saw global revenues rise four per cent to $11bn in 2020, with AWS (+30 per cent) and Dell (+13%) its top-performing major vendors.

Although SHI doesn't break out UK numbers on Companies House, we understand from market sources that its Milton Keynes-based UK/EMEA arm turned over around £325m in 2020 (flat year on year). SHI has added an Irish office and Dutch warehouse to support its international customers in 2021, hiring over 80 staff in the UK and Europe. Its UK business bagged Cisco Gold status in September.

Covid impact

SHI's revenue growth has slowed during the pandemic (falling from 18 per cent in 2018 to seven per cent in 2019 and four per cent last year). But its H1 2021 numbers - which show a five per cent revenue uplift (including a 15 per cent rise in June) - indicate that midmarket customers who held back on investments last year are starting to loosen the purse strings.