Dear Shareholders,
Dear Sir or Madam,
The year 2025 was a challenging and unsettled year for Bechtle – and at the same time a year in which we set an important course for our future. We experienced very different quarters: a phase of subdued growth in the first six months was followed by a turnaround in the middle of the year, and finally an outstanding fourth quarter with a record December. This momentum over the course of the year was primarily a reflection of a challenging economic environment, particularly in our key markets of Germany and France – and while it was understandable, it was nevertheless unusual and, it has to be said, unsatisfactory for us.
At the same time, we have to recognise that we live in times of extremely rapid, often unpredictable change and erratic technological developments. Ensuring continuity of success is becoming increasingly challenging.
The geopolitical and resultant geo-economic tensions of recent months – most recently the war in the Middle East – have once again shown us how fragile stability has become. Energy prices react sensitively, supply chains remain vulnerable, uncertainty characterises economic decisions.
In addition, the IT industry is increasingly feeling the consequences of the technological revolution based on artificial intelligence. The increasing shortage of storage media components is becoming a serious challenge across the industry. It is now affecting not only end devices such as PCs or laptops, but also server and storage infrastructure as well as large data centres.
There are many reasons for this – first and foremost the rapidly growing demand for AI applications and data-intensive business models. Demand is growing faster than production capacities can be expanded worldwide. In addition to risks, this also harbours great opportunities.
It is precisely in such volatile times that the strength of a company is revealed. And Bechtle has demonstrated its strength impressively.
Our business volume increased by 8.1 per cent in 2025, with organic growth of 5.2 per cent. This growth is all the more remarkable given that we fell well short of our expectations until the middle of the year. What ultimately carried us through was the extraordinary commitment of our employees and an impressive joint spurt at the end: The volume of business in the fourth quarter was more than 16 per cent higher than in the previous year, while earnings before taxes were up by more than 20 per cent. December was outstanding – for the first time we exceeded one billion euros in business volume in just one month.
At the same time, we are pressing ahead with our internationalisation at a high tempo, both organically and through acquisitions. Our aim is to broaden our portfolio in our national markets, gain further market share, balance out economic weaknesses in individual countries and thus make our organisation more resilient. Our consistent internationalisation thus contributes significantly to the stability of the Bechtle Group as a whole. Our new segment structure – Germany, France, Benelux and the Other Europe segment – now also makes our European focus visible and reflects our operational reality from a capital market perspective.
For all of us on the Executive Board, 2025 also stands for an exceptional team effort. As of 31 December 2025, 16,360 people worked for Bechtle – 526 more than in the previous year. With their commitment, sense of responsibility and motivation, they all contribute to successfully guiding our customers through their digital transformation. My sincere thanks go to the entire Bechtle team.
We are also confident about the start to 2026. Our order backlog at the end of the year was 25.6 per cent higher than in the previous year. We were therefore able to capitalise on the momentum from the strong fourth quarter. At the same time, the business environment remains challenging, as geopolitical tensions, volatile markets and rapid technological developments continue to characterise our industry.
In relation to this backdrop, we are planning business volume growth of 5 to 10 per cent for 2026. Against the background of the current global political and industry-specific situation, and also our own investments in Bechtle’s future viability, we expect a range of 0 to +5 per cent for earnings before taxes.
At the same time, we are proposing a stable dividend of 70 cents per share – an expression of our reliability for you, our shareholders.
The basis for this is our strong balance sheet. Bechtle is virtually debt-free and has a high level of liquidity and a solid equity base. With operating cash flow of almost €300 million, we are creating the conditions to continue investing consistently in people, technologies and innovations.
A key signal for our future is our new vision, which we presented together with six missions in February 2026. In a world of accelerated and increasingly unpredictable change, a company such as Bechtle needs a clear, long-term orientation framework. Our vision succinctly expresses this guiding principle:
“In a world of accelerated change, we activate the potential of IT. Always prepared for success.”
The new vision describes our aspiration to utilise technology in a way that has a tangible impact for our customers and enables sustainable business success.
For the first time, six mission statements complement the vision and translate it into strategic fields of action: Performance (profitable growth), Customers (customer-centred go-to-market strategy and international presence), Technology & Services (anticipation of trends and development of future-proof business segments), People (continuous skills development and entrepreneurship), Business Excellence (operational strength and efficiency) and Sustainability (ethical business, environment, people, digital future). This architecture gives us orientation, creates focus – and is already triggering a wave of positive feedback throughout the Bechtle Group. It is a clear commitment to our role in shaping digitalisation in Europe. Together, the vision and missions provide clear guidance for the long-term development of the entire Bechtle Group.
Finally, I would also like to look ahead personally. After almost 20 years at Bechtle, 2026 will be my last year as CEO. With Konstantin Ebert, who will take over the role of CEO on 1 January 2027, and Christian Jehle, who has been part of our Executive Board as CFO since January 2026, a strong new generation of managers is in place, rounded off by Michael Guschlbauer. This early and forward-looking succession arrangement fills me with great confidence.
I am very grateful for the trust that the founders and the Supervisory Board have placed in me since 2007. Being responsible for such a forward-looking company was and is both an honour and a challenge for me. Together with the Executive Board team, my motivation has always been to position Bechtle successfully in the market and to be a future-orientated employer for our employees. These have been years full of intensive tasks, joint successes and certainly also great challenges, for example the financial crisis and the time of the pandemic. To have mastered all of this as a team makes me very proud.
Bechtle has a clear strategic focus, is financially strong and is firmly anchored culturally. We are excellently prepared to further utilise the opportunities presented by the digital transformation and continue our growth trajectory. Or, to quote our vision: Always prepared for success.
Thank you very much for your trust and your loyalty to Bechtle.
Yours faithfully,
Dr. Thomas Olemotz
Chairman of the Executive Board