Specialism: IT infrastructure, cloud and cybersecurity
Vendors include: Check Point, Citrix, Dell, Fortinet, Lenovo, NetApp, Nutanix, Pure Storage, Rubrik, VMware
UK gross billings: £1.12bn (-1%)
UK headcount: 357
AI-driven security has been a hit for the UK arm of this enterprise computing specialist in 2025, its Regional Director Anthony Dobson revealed (see Q&A below).
Arrow ECS UK’s gross billings continue to hover just above £1bn (slipping marginally to £1.12bn in calendar 2024, according to its latest accounts).
The VAD giant scored a coup at the start of 2025 when Citrix moved to appoint it as its sole distributor in the UK and Europe, as well as the US. Its other vendor muckers include Fortinet, VMware and Check Point.
Arrow ECS forms one half of Arrow Electronics, the world’s third-largest distributor behind only TD Synnex and Ingram. It generated some $7.9bn of the NYSE-listed giant’s $27.9bn revenues last year, with Arrow’s larger industrial components arm chipping in the remaining $20bn.
“AI-driven security is transforming how threats are detected, contained, and managed”
Quickfire Q&A with Regional Director, Sales Anthony Dobson
What’s your top priority over the next 12 months?
Providing cloud aggregation, services, and new go-to-market models that not only enable our channel partners, but also create growth opportunities for their reseller channels and end-customers.
What’s the most underrated facet of your business?
Cutting through complexity. Giving our channel partners support and toolkits so they can focus on the value-add.
Name a vendor or technology area that’s been a hit for you in 2025
AI-driven security. The antidote to AI-driven cyberattacks. It’s transforming how threats are detected, contained, and managed.
What distribution news story most grabbed your attention in 2025?
The rise of AI with purpose. The channel is demanding AI that delivers business outcomes – not just AI for tech’s sake.
3 of the 4 largest companies in this report have changed ownership in the last 12 months (or are about to). What does that say about the market?
The real signal is where growth is coming from – cloud, software, AI, and platformisation – technology aggregation in these areas is opening new opportunities for the channel ecosystem.
Oxygen 50 Must-Know IT Distributors and Marketplaces 2025 is Powered by Pimberly. See who else made the cut here.
