Bechtle buys Apple reseller in the Netherlands

Josh Budd
16 December 2019

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Bechtle claims it has created an "Apple Centre of Excellence" in the Netherlands through acquiring the B2B arm of reseller Ivizi.

Based in Maastricht, Ivizi turned over €15m in 2018. It is a certified Apple Premium Reseller and an authorised Apple Premium Service Provider.

Ivizi's owner and managing director, Robert de Vree, along with 18 other employees, will stay on at the company as it falls under Bechtle's ARP brand.

Bechtle claims that the deal has created an "Apple Centre of Excellence" in the Dutch market, with other Bechtle subsidiaries in the Netherlands - Buyitdirect and Bechtle Direct - expected to also benefit from Ivizi's expertise.

"Ivizi is a significant step in our ambitious strategy to grow across Europe. We now have the opportunity to dramatically expand our portfolio with popular Apple products and services and our new Apple Centre of Excellence is the next stage on the way to developing our portfolio in all Bechtle E-commerce locations throughout Europe. I personally see this as an enormous competitive advantage," said Thomas Jensen, EVP of Bechtle's e-commerce business.

Bechtle has had a presence in the Netherlands since 1998 and acquired buyitdirect in 2008. Now Bechtle has more than 400 staff across its three operating brands in the country.

One of Bechtle's closest competitors, Computacenter, swooped on the Dutch market in 2018, through acquiring €137m-turnover Misco Netherlands.

Bechtle has been expanding its footprint across Europe through M&A in recent years. It made its largest-ever acquisition last year when it acquired €420m-turnover French reseller Inmac Wstore.

But the Swiss market has been the focal point of Bechtle's M&A strategy this year. The firm has acquired four Swiss firms so far in 2019 and reorganised its Swiss business last month, bringing its disparate systems houses under the Bechtle Switzerland AG brand.