Business Micros celebrates 40 years supplying software to the industry
2019 marks the 40th anniversary of one of the industry’s most respected and best loved suppliers – Business Micros. The company is planning a series of celebrations to mark the event, many of which will be centred on its stand at the FIT Show in May. Established in Scotland by Des Sharratt and Alistair Fyall way back in 1979, Business Micros was a true pioneer in the introduction of software to this industry and still very much sets the agenda today. It started out supplying software to the aluminium window and door sector, but quickly advanced into timber and PVC-U during the 1980s, growing rapidly to become the industry’s undisputed number one.
Current Managing Director Graeme Bailey and Technical Director Jim Cronie joined Des in 1990 and together they helped shape Business Micros into the dynamic, innovative organisation it has become, building a reputation along the way for looking after customers and staff and for always delivering on promises. When Graeme and Jim arrived, there were around 250 customers and just a handful of staff. Now, the number of customers stands at more than 2000 and, within its two distinct divisions – Business Micros and BM Aluminium – the company employs close to 50 people.
Trailblazing Business Micros software programs like WinStar were the backbone of many fabrication set-ups in the early days and many within the company have fond memories of when every WinStar package was sold along with a computer, but its continuing success owes much to the iconic Evolution software platform and the hugely popular EvoNET business management software. For Graeme Bailey, it is the team at Business Micros who are the most important contributors though. He says: “There’s a huge amount of experience and expertise here but, much more than that, there’s a real commitment from everyone to do a good job for every single customer. Honesty, enthusiasm and professionalism have always characterised what we do and I’m immensely proud of that.”
While everyone in the business is taking the opportunity to look back and reflect on four decades of success, no one is resting on their laurels. Sales Manager Chris Bailey says that 2019 will see the launch of the next generation of Business Micros software at the FIT Show – bringing some significant new product advances into the market. He adds: “We all feel privileged to work in such an amazing industry and with such a fantastic team. After four decades, we’re proud of what we have achieved but just as excited about what lies ahead.”
