Softcat

Softcat

Company type	Public limited company
Traded as	LSE:  SCT FTSE 250 component
Industry	Information technology
Founded	1993
Founder	Peter Kelly
Headquarters	Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Number of locations	14
Key people	Graeme Watt (Chairman) Graham Charlton (CEO), Katy Mecklenburgh (CFO)
Revenue	£962.6 million (2024) [1]
Operating income	£154.1 million (2024) [1]
Net income	£119.0 million (2024) [1]
Number of employees	2,459 (2024) [1]
Website	softcat.com

Softcat is a Marlow-based IT infrastructure provider founded by Peter Kelly in 1993. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange and it is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.

History

1993–2015: Softcat as a limited company

Founded originally as Wardswift, ^[2] Softcat was founded by Peter Kelly on 30 March 1993 in High Wycombe, under its original business name 'Software Catalogue'. ^{[3] [4]} In December 2005, Martin Hellawell became managing director (later CEO) of the company. In April 2006, the company moved its headquarters to Marlow. ^{[5] [6]}

2015–present: Softcat as a public limited company

The company was the subject of an initial public offering on the London Stock Exchange in November 2015. ^[4] In March 2016, the company was promoted to the FTSE 250 Index. ^[7] In March 2018, Hellawell stepped down as CEO and became chairman. ^{[8] [9] [10]} On 1 April 2018, Hellawell was replaced by Graeme Watt as CEO. ^{[11] [12]}

In 2016, Softcat opened an office in Glasgow, Scotland making it the company's first office outside of England. ^[13] In 2018, it announced that it would be opening an office in Dublin, Ireland making it the company's first office outside of the United Kingdom. ^{[1] [14]} In October 2019 Softcat opened its ninth office, in Birmingham. ^[15] Since then, Softcat has opened international offices in Washington DC, Singapore, Hong Kong, Sydney, and Amsterdam. ^[16]

Explain IT Podcast

Logo for the Explain IT podcast

On 14 March 2018, Softcat launched a podcast, Explain IT. ^{[17] [18] [19] [20]} During its first season, Explain IT charted at Number 39 on the UK iTunes podcast chart. ^[21] In December 2018, Softcat announced on its podcast feed that it would be launching a second season in January 2019. ^[22] On 3 January 2019, Explain IT launched its second season. ^[23] On 4 July 2019, Explain IT won the award for 'Best Marketing Campaign' at the 2019 CRN Sales and Marketing Awards. ^[24]

Season 1

#	Title	Date
S01E01	"Ransomware"	April 4, 2018 (2018-04-04)
What it is, why you should care about it and how an organisation might protect themselves against it.
S01E02	"Social Engineering"	April 18, 2018 (2018-04-18)
What exactly it is, who is behind it, how an organisation might protect themselves against it
S01E03	"Moving to Windows 10"	May 2, 2018 (2018-05-02)
Preparing your organisation for the plunge into Microsoft Windows 10
S01E04	"Hyper-converged infrastructure"	May 16, 2018 (2018-05-16)
We talk about hyper-converged infrastructure and how it's worked for engineering company Laing O'Rourke.
S01E05	"Digital Transformation"	June 6, 2018 (2018-06-06)
All companies should be considering Digital Transformation, this podcast outlines four simple steps to follow.
S01E06	"Dealing with an IT Security Incident"	June 20, 2018 (2018-06-20)
Six steps to follow when you experience a security incident or breach on your network.
S01E07	"GDPR"	July 4, 2018 (2018-07-04)
We tackle the ins and outs of GDPR compliance.
S01E08	"Cloud"	July 25, 2018 (2018-07-25)
We provide a five-step process for a successful move to cloud.

Season 2

#	Title	Date
S02E01	"2019 Tech Predictions"	January 3, 2019 (2019-01-03)
Our Tech Predictions For 2019.
S02E02	"AI and Machine Learning"	January 16, 2019 (2019-01-16)
What is artificial intelligence and how can it help organisations today? Featuring Hewlett Packard Enterprise
S02E03	"The Future of IT in Healthcare"	January 30, 2019 (2019-01-30)
What is the future of IT in healthcare? Featuring Bolton NHS Foundation Trust
S02E04	"Security Trends"	February 27, 2019 (2019-02-27)
What is trending in the world of security, and how can your organisation protect itself? Featuring Check Point
S02E05	"5G"	March 13, 2019 (2019-03-13)
5G. What is it, how does it work and what's in it for organisations?
S02E06	"Supply Chain Attacks"	March 27, 2019 (2019-03-27)
Supply Chain Attacks. What is it, how did it come about and how can you stop them?
S02E07	"Rise of the machines"	April 10, 2019 (2019-04-10)
Are the machines taking over?
S02E08	"Unstructured Data"	May 8, 2019 (2019-05-08)
What is unstructured data?
S02E09	"Quantum Computing"	May 22, 2019 (2019-05-22)
What is quantum computing and what impacts will it have on the future?
S02E10	"Multicloud"	June 5, 2019 (2019-06-05)
What is multicloud and when is it going to get here?
S02E10	"The future of work and the workplace"	June 19, 2019 (2019-06-19)
Looking at the future of work and the workplace?

References

1. "Annual Results 2024" (PDF). Softcat. Retrieved 10 February 2025.
2. "SOFTCAT PLC – Overview (free company information from Companies House)". Companies House, Government of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
3. "SOFTWARE CATALOGUE PLC – Overview (free company information from Companies House)". Companies House, Government of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 1 July 2018.
4. "Tech IPO Softcat sizzles on debut". Interactive Investor. 13 November 2016. Retrieved 2 March 2016.
5. "SOFTCAT PLC – Filing history (free information from Companies House)" . Retrieved 1 July 2018.
6. "IT Services in Oxfordshire | Softcat". Softcat. Retrieved 26 June 2018.
7. Bambrough, Billy (2 March 2016). "Morrison's storms back into the FTSE 100" . Retrieved 1 July 2018.
8. "Channel luvvie Martin Hellawell set to check out of Softcat. Sort of" . Retrieved 26 June 2018.
9. "Martin Hellawell on growth hotspots, why the reseller model is not dead, and why it's not in Softcat's interest to clone him | CRN" . Retrieved 26 June 2018.
10. "Martin Hellawell to step down as Softcat CEO, becoming chairman". BOLSAMANIA. Retrieved 26 June 2018.
11. "Softcat picks Graeme Watt as next CEO | CRN" . Retrieved 26 June 2018.
12. "What will £450k buy you? A new CEO at Softcat" . Retrieved 26 June 2018.
13. "Softcat cuts ribbon on Glasgow office | CRN" . Retrieved 26 June 2018.
14. "Softcat receives keys to Irish office | CRN" . Retrieved 26 June 2018.
15. "Where is Softcat opening its next office? | CRN". channelweb.co.uk. 19 March 2019. Retrieved 10 April 2019.
16. "Multinational IT Services". Softcat.
17. "Explain IT by Softcat on Apple Podcasts". Apple Podcasts. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
18. "Explain IT". podcast.softcat.com. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
19. "Explain IT". open.spotify.com. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
20. Softcat. "Google Podcasts – Explain IT" . Retrieved 19 December 2018.
21. "iTunesCharts.net: 'Explain IT' by Softcat (British Podcasts iTunes Chart)". itunescharts.net. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
22. "Explain IT by Softcat on Apple Podcasts". Apple Podcasts. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
23. "Explain IT Season 2, Episode 1 - 2019 Tech predictions". Softcat. Retrieved 8 January 2019.
24. "Sales & Marketing Awards 2019 winners". events.channelweb.co.uk. Retrieved 25 June 2019.

External links

• Official website