20 01732 759725 We have very good relationships at that level.” Where Booth believes Acer has the potential to do much better is in the public sector and the SMB and enterprise markets. “We already have a good footprint in public sector and some great relationships there, but our penetration of public sector is nowhere near where it can be. SOHO and SMB is another segment where we think we can mobilise pretty efficiently and where we are already creating a lot of velocity.” He added: “In public sector (outside education) and in enterprise I don’t think many players see Acer as strategic, or have historically seen Acer as strategic, but that has been changing over the last three years. We are currently working with a huge multinational reseller on a framework of supply for one of the leading social media brands in the world. That has been led out of the UK and that reseller has told us they’ve enjoyed the experience of working with us and would like to talk to us about doing more. We’ve seen that more and more over the last three years, people realising we’re a safe pair of hands, we’re a panel solutions), AOPEN (digital signage and edge computing), Posiflex (point-of-sale, AIoT, kiosk and industrial PCs) and Opticon (scanning solutions and electronic shelf-labelling). Craig Booth, Acer’s General Manager of UK, South Africa and the Nordics, believes the combination of these growth engines, continued innovation in Acer’s core PC offering (see box) and expanded routes to market will enable Acer to increase commercial sales from around 30% of total revenue to 50% within the next three years, with potential for significant growth in public sector, SMB, mid-market and enterprise sales. Significantly, he expects growth in the commercial sector to be achieved without a corresponding decline in education, where Acer is very strong, and retail where it is continuing to grow. “Our education partners see us as strategic, particularly around Chrome but also around Windows and displays. We are a significant part of that market in terms of product supply and, more importantly, we are a value partner. Our mix of products is far greater than most, if not all, of our competitors. Our ASP (average selling price) is above the market average because we don’t sell on price – we sell on value and experience,” he said. “Outside the education vertical, we have a good reputation in SMB. We have an incredibly healthy SMB business with a couple of major retailers and there is a natural underlying demand for our brand and our product from smaller registered organisations, SOHOs and SMBs, asking retailers and e-tailers for Acer devices. In March, Acer celebrated its 50th anniversary with a special event at the Museum of Science and Technology in Milan, where the PC vendor highlighted its key achievements since 1976 and outlined a growth strategy for the new era of AI. This strategy doubles down on its ongoing evolution from a device manufacturer into a technology solutions provider and builds on year-on-year revenue growth of 4.1% in 2025, which took the company’s turnover back to prepandemic levels (before the impact of recent industry-wide component shortages, price hikes and supply chain disruption). Much of Acer’s growth is being powered by rising B2B sales, which accounted for 30% of revenue in EMEA, and ‘multiple growth engines’ outside its core focus on computers and displays. Generating one third of global revenues in 2025, these include energy storage solutions, electric mobility, EV charging infrastructure & hydrogen stations, smart cities, gaming, apparel, home appliances, AI-based medical solutions, cybersecurity, cloud solutions, industrial PCs, connectivity devices, system integration, computer repair and maintenance services. Key names within the wider Acer group include Altos Computing (servers, AI infrastructure and interactive flat Renowned PC brand aiming to boost commercial sales with a diversified technology offering and expanded range of AI-enabled notebooks Acer marks 50th anniversary with B2B sales push PCs
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDUxNDM=