DSG international plc (Dixons Store Group) is one of the largest
consumer electronicsConsumer electronics include electronic equipment intended for everyday use. Consumer electronics are most often used in entertainment, communications and office productivity...
retailers in Europe. The company operates the Dixons, Dixons Travel,
CurrysCurrys is an electrical retailer in the United Kingdom and Ireland and is owned by DSG International plc. It specialises in home electronics and household appliances, with 295 superstores and 73 high street stores. It is often supported with the marketing slogan; "Currys.....
,
Currys.digitalCurrys Digital is an electrical retailer in the United Kingdom, that is owned by DSG International plc.thumb|250px|A former Dixons high street store rebranded as Currys.digital, in Stroud, Gloucestershire, carrying the previous logo.- History :...
,
PC WorldPC World is one of the United Kingdom's largest chains of mass-market computer superstores. It is part of DSG International plc . PC World operates under the brand name PC City in Spain, Italy and Sweden.- History :...
and Electro World stores along with many other brands across Europe including
EquanetEquanet Ltd is one of the top ten suppliers of PC and network-related hardware and software in the UK. Equanet operates as a specialist-buying agency working on behalf of professional buyers from the UK distributors of PC and networking products....
and Advent Computers.
The company, formerly known as
Dixons Stores Group plc, specializes in selling high technology consumer electronics products, audio-video equipment,
PCsA personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end user, with no intervening computer operator...
, small and large domestic appliances, photographic equipment, communication products and related financial and after sales services (
e.g. extended service agreements). They also sell other products and services such as electrical products, spares, repairs, mobile services, online digital photo processing, pre-recorded media and childcare equipment.
Dixons' main competitor is Kesa Electricals plc, which owns
CometComet is an electrical retailer in the United Kingdom, which is owned by KESA Electricals plc after the demerger of Kingfisher plc. The group was founded in 1933 by George Hollingberry in Hull as Comet Battery Stores Limited...
and
DartyDarty, founded in 1957 by the Darty family in France, is now a wholly owned subsidiary of the UK-based KESA Electricals Plc specialising in Electrical retailing...
. The company is listed on the
London Stock ExchangeThe London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1801, it is one of the largest stock exchanges in the world, with many overseas listings as well as British companies...
and is part of the
FTSE 250 IndexThe FTSE 250 Index is a capitalisation-weighted index of 250 UK companies on the London Stock Exchange. They are selected quarterly as being the 101st to 350th largest companies with their primary listing on the exchange. Promotions to and demotions from the index take place quarterly in March,...
.
Early years
Dixons was founded by
Charles KalmsCharles Kalms was a British retailer and founder of the Dixons chains that expanded to become the UK's largest electrical retail chain.-Career:Kalms opened the first Dixons photographic studio at 32 High Street, Southend-on-Sea...
and Michael Mindel in 1937 in the High Street in Southend under the name of
Dixons Studios Limited. The name
Dixons, selected randomly from the
telephone directoryA telephone directory is a listing of telephone subscribers in a geographical area or subscribers to services provided by the organization that publishes the directory.-Content:...
, was sufficiently short to fit above the small shop front. During the early 1940s Dixons set up seven studios around
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
but by the end of
the WarWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including all great powers, organized into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
the business was reduced to a single studio in
EdgwareEdgware is a suburb of North London situated north-west of Charing Cross. It should not be confused with Edgware Road, some miles to the south. Most of Edgware is in the London Borough of Barnet, but the western part is in the London Borough of Harrow and the Queensbury area is in the London...
.
Stanley KalmsHarold Stanley Kalms, Baron Kalms, Kt, is the life president and former chairman of DSG International plc . DSG owns Dixons.com, Currys, The Link and PC World outlets...
, the son of the founder, joined the business in 1948 and started advertising the Dixons products in the press.
In 1950 the company started selling cameras and in 1957 opened a new head office and buying centre in Edgware to accommodate the staff dealing with 60,000 mail order customers and to provide administrative back-up for its six stores.
Dixons was first listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1962 changing its name at that time to
Dixons Photographic Limited. It bought out competitors,
Ascotts, in 1962 and
Bennetts, in 1964. In 1967 Dixons bought an colour processing laboratory in
StevenageStevenage is a town and district in Hertfordshire, England. It is to the east of junctions 7 and 8 of the A1, and is between Letchworth Garden City to the north, and Welwyn Garden City to the south....
.
Charles Kalms was succeeded by his son Stanley in 1971. In 1972 Dixons acquired another competitor,
Wallace HeatonWallace Heaton was the premier photographic retailer in London from 1917 until 1972 when it was bought by Dixons. The company was originally set up by a Wallace Heaton, a pharmacist who opened his shop in New Bond Street; over time he moved his business from pharmacy to photography and photographic...
, and in 1974 it opened its
StevenageStevenage is a town and district in Hertfordshire, England. It is to the east of junctions 7 and 8 of the A1, and is between Letchworth Garden City to the north, and Welwyn Garden City to the south....
distribution centre.
In 1982 Dixons introduced its own
SaishoSaisho is an own brand formerly used by Dixons stores in the UK. It has since been phased out in favour of another of DSG's brands, Matsui....
brand range of electronic goods. In 1984 it bought
CurrysCurrys is an electrical retailer in the United Kingdom and Ireland and is owned by DSG International plc. It specialises in home electronics and household appliances, with 295 superstores and 73 high street stores. It is often supported with the marketing slogan; "Currys.....
, a white goods retailer, and
Mastercare, a nationwide electrical appliance service organisation. In 1986 it bought the dry-cleaners Sketchley and the Supasnaps chain of photo shops. In 1987 it bought
SiloSilo was an electronics retailer that opened in 1947 and operated throughout the United States until its demise in 1995. The western region stores were known for a long time as Appliance TV City.-Beginning:...
, at that time the United States' third largest electrical retailer, and in 1988 Wigfalls, a
MidlandsThe English Midlands, or the Midlands is the traditional name for the area comprising central England that broadly corresponds to the early medieval Kingdom of Mercia. It borders Southern England, Northern England, East Anglia and Wales. Its largest city is Birmingham, and it was an important...
-based retailer.
1990s
In 1993 Dixons bought Vision Technology Group (VTG), operating under the
PC WorldPC World is one of the United Kingdom's largest chains of mass-market computer superstores. It is part of DSG International plc . PC World operates under the brand name PC City in Spain, Italy and Sweden.- History :...
brand at
CroydonCroydon is a major commercial centre in Greater London and the principal settlement of the London Borough of Croydon. It is south of Charing Cross, and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan...
,
Lakeside Shopping CentreThe Lakeside Shopping Centre is a large out-of-town shopping centre located in West Thurrock, in the borough of Thurrock, Essex just beyond the eastern boundary of Greater London. It opened on 25 October 1990....
,
BrentfordBrentford is a suburban area of the London Borough of Hounslow at the confluence of the River Thames and the River Brent in West London, situated 8 miles west south-west of Charing Cross.- History :...
and
Staples CornerStaples Corner is a major road junction in London, United Kingdom.It has two linked roundabouts and flyovers, which connect the A406 North Circular Road with the A5 Edgware Road and the start of the M1 motorway...
. Later that year the company sold VTG's mail order division, Dixons US Holdings Inc and Supasnaps.
It opened its first Tax Free store at Heathrow Terminal 3 in 1994 and then later that year launched
The LinkThe Link is an internet only mobile phone retailer in the United Kingdom. It was formerly 60% owned by DSG International plc, the UK's largest consumer electronics retail group, and 40% owned by O2, the British telecommunications company...
, the company's first venture into communications. The Head office was moved to
Hemel HempsteadHemel Hempstead is a town in Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom with a population of 81,143 at the United Kingdom Census 2001 . Developed after World War II as a new town, it has existed as a settlement since the 8th century...
.
In 1996 DSG bought DN Computer Services, a computer reseller business.. It also acquired the retail assets of Harry Moore Ltd, an Irish electrical retailer.
Cellnet bought a 40% stake in The Link in 1997. Also that year the Dixons website was launched.
In 1998
FreeserveFreeserve was a UK Internet Service Provider, founded in 1998. It was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index but merged into the Wanadoo group in 2000, itself a subsidiary of France Telecom...
, a free internet service, was launched: it was later sold to
France TelecomFrance Télécom is the main telecommunications company in France, the third-largest in Europe and one of the largest in the world. It currently employs about 191,000 people and has nearly 159 million customers worldwide . In 2008 the group had revenue of €53.5 billion...
and renamed
WanadooWanadoo is the former name of the ISP division of Orange SA, which is a subsidiary of France Télécom. It operated in France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Spain, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Senegal, Mauritius, Madagascar, Lebanon & Jordan...
.
DSG bought Elkjøp ASA, a leading
NordicThe Nordic countries make up a region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic which consists of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden and their associated territories which include the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Åland...
retailer, in 1999.
2000–present
In 2002 DSG bought UniEuro, a leading Italian-based electrical retailer,, and Genesis Communications, a
mobile phoneA mobile phone or mobile is a long-range, electronic device used for mobile telecommunications...
service provider. DSG opened its first Electro World store in
HungaryHungary , in English officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in the Carpathian Basin of Central Europe, bordered by Austria, Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, and Slovenia. Its capital is Budapest. Hungary is a member of OECD, NATO, EU, V4 and is a Schengen state...
.
Further expansion came in 2005 when DSG bought an interest in Eldorado Group, the largest electrical retailer in
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and
UkraineUkraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east; Belarus to the north; Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary to the west; Romania and Moldova to the southwest; and the Black Sea and Sea of Azov to the south. The city of Kiev is both the capital and the largest city of...
, with an option to buy the rest by 2011 at a fixed price of $1.9 billion USD (£1 billion GBP). In 2006 DSG was awarded The Queen's Award for Enterprise. The company announced that the Dixons brand would continue purely
onlineONLINE is a magazine for information systems first published in 1977. The publisher Online, Inc. was founded the year before. In May 2002, Information Today, Inc. acquired the assets of Online Inc....
and that all high-street stores will be rebranded
Currys.digitalCurrys Digital is an electrical retailer in the United Kingdom, that is owned by DSG International plc.thumb|250px|A former Dixons high street store rebranded as Currys.digital, in Stroud, Gloucestershire, carrying the previous logo.- History :...
. Dixons also bought 75% of Fotovista, a
FrenchFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
photographic business.
In January 2008 DSG announced that it would stop selling analogue TVs. Only Integrated Digital Televisions would be sold, in an effort to get consumers ready for the digital switchover. In May, Dixons announced that it would close 77 of its 177 UK
Currys.digital shops as their building leases expire over the next five years. The reduction reflected the news that US Electrical rival
Best BuyBest Buy Co., Inc. is a specialty retailer of consumer electronics in the United States accounting for 19% of the market. It also operates in Canada, Mexico, and China. The company's subsidiaries include Geek Squad, Magnolia Audio Video, Pacific Sales, and, in Canada operates under both the Best...
was seeking to establish itself within the UK.
In December 2008 DSG made 600 field engineers redundant 250 found alternative positions within the company and 350 did not. PC World stores reported holding huge amounts of unrepaired LCD and plasma screens which were preventing store profitability because of time-to-fix guarantees. Staff claimed tech-guy redundancies to be much higher than the official DSG press releases report. DSG also hit back at claims they are playing
ScroogeScrooge may refer to:*Ebenezer Scrooge, the name of the selfish and miserly protagonist of Charles Dickens' 1843 novel A Christmas Carol*Scrooge , a film featuring Seymour Hicks*Scrooge , a film featuring Alastair Sim...
for classing Christmas Day as a normal working day.
In January 2009 PC World Store Managers posted private internal memos on the message boards of
pocket-lint.co.uk revealing "...backlogs, shortages, management gaps...", a pressure to reduce full-time staff and
B2BB2B can mean:* Business-to-business, as in intra-organisational communication, collaboration, and commerce - normally electronic, normally using websites and/or web services...
service closures following a huge overspend on store refurbishments and referred customers to outside companies.. On Monday 12 January all shopping websites were closed for around 24 hours causing concerns to the DSGi management. Following the mountain of problems that had been rumoured on websites and in other media, the managing directors of Currys and The Tech Guys both left the company— before poor trading announcements Financial pressures hit DSGi and Computer Weekly rated the business as risky. Trading updates on 15 January 2009 showed sales were overall down 10%. In
FebruaryFebruary is the second month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the shortest month and the only month with fewer than 30 days. The month has 29 days in leap years, when the year number is divisible by four...
DSGi trialled a Currys and PC World store merger. The two retailers owned by DSGi never merged stores to prevent opposition from Best Buy snapping up spare units. But since the credit crunch had opened up a wave of spare out-of-town units left by MFI, Woolworths and others, it could seem impractical to hold onto units next door to each other. Branch Managers complained of very little staff left in the stores following the targeted 95 million pounds of savings ordered by John Browett. The recent axe thrown at the service side of the company was reflected in a recent customer survey when the DSGi group took the bottom 3 positions for customer service, despite spending thousands of pounds on the "FIVES" training program.
PC Retail magazine reported that "stock shortages at DSGi group will now pave the way for turmoil and fuel the collapse rumours". Credit insurers have dramatically reduced credit. In March 2009 the credit insurer Euler Hermes rapidly slashed cover, with DSGi being the worst hit. DSGi still continued to play down the problems.
DSGi brand Equanet, part of the group that owns Currys and PCWorld, has failed to make the second round of the tender stage for a £6bn public sector framework agreement due to a lack of business growth over the last 36 months. Equanet is the third largest supplier on the current agreement and has seen a sales decline and it's in-house engineering teams dispand in favour of contracting staffing arrangements.
Advent
Advent is a computer brand operated by DSGi and makes electrical appliances such as
notebooksA laptop is a personal computer designed for mobile use and small and light enough to sit on one's lap while in use. A laptop integrates most of the typical components of a desktop computer, including a display, a keyboard, a pointing device , speakers, and often including a battery, into a single...
and
desktop PCsA desktop computer is a personal computer in a form intended for regular use at a single location, as opposed to a mobile laptop or portable computer. Prior to the wide spread of microprocessors, a computer that could fit on a desk was considered remarkably small...
.
Currys Megastore
The biggest electrical retailer is now opening megastores for more of a massive range of products from the smallest items to the biggest. The Biggest Currys Megastore in London - Currys Megastore - New Malden, Burlington Road, Surrey, KT3 4PA. Just off the A3, Shannon Corner.
Currys
Currys is the UK's largest electrical retailer. It also has stores in the
Republic of IrelandIreland is a country in north-western Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned on 3 May 1921. It is a parliamentary democracy and a republic...
. The company's primary market is
whiteA major appliance, or domestic appliance, is usually defined as a large machine which accomplishes some routine housekeeping task, which includes purposes such as cooking, food preservation, or cleaning, whether in a household, institutional, commercial or industrial setting...
and brown goods, but also sells
small applianceSmall appliance refers to a class of home appliances that are portable or semi-portable or which are used on tabletops, countertops, or other platforms. Such items are contrasted with major appliances, which are typically fixtures that cannot be easily moved...
s,
personal computerA personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end user, with no intervening computer operator...
s and
mobile phoneA mobile phone or mobile is a long-range, electronic device used for mobile telecommunications...
s. Currys specialises in home
electronicsElectronics is a branch of science and technology that deals with the controlled flow of electrons. The ability to control electron flow is usually applied to information handling or device control. Electronics is distinct from electrical science and technology, which deals with the generation,...
and
householdThe household is "the basic residential unit in which economic production, consumption, inheritance, child rearing, and shelter are organized and carried out"; [the household] "may or may not be synonymous with family"....
appliances. Currys is known for slogan "Currys, No Worries", but is now replaced by "We Can Help". Currys Sponsors
The SimpsonsThe Simpsons is an American animated television sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its eponymous family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, and Maggie...
on Sky1 from 2009-present.
Currys.digital
Currys.digital is the rebranded name for Dixons retail outlets in the UK (excluding Ireland and the Dixons Travel stores operating in UK airports). Currys.digital is branded as a specialist division of Currys aimed at technology-focused consumers with a product range including cameras, personal computers, audio and video equipment.
DSG Ireland
DSG Ireland has stores in major cities of the
Republic of IrelandIreland is a country in north-western Europe. The modern sovereign state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned on 3 May 1921. It is a parliamentary democracy and a republic...
. DSG Ireland announced that they will not adopt the new Currys.digital branding for high-street stores, instead retaining the traditional Dixons branding, with Currys being used exclusively for large-format superstores. This decision was later reversed, and all Dixons stores have been rebranded to Currys, except the one in the
Jervis Shopping CentreThe Jervis Shopping Centre is a major shopping centre in Dublin, Ireland. Opened in 1996, the centre is located in the area bordered by Jervis Street, Upper Abbey Street, Mary Street, and Liffey Street. - History :...
, which became a PC World.
Electro World
Electro World is DSG's chain of electrical superstores in
HungaryHungary , in English officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in the Carpathian Basin of Central Europe, bordered by Austria, Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, and Slovenia. Its capital is Budapest. Hungary is a member of OECD, NATO, EU, V4 and is a Schengen state...
, the
Czech RepublicThe Czech Republic is a country in Central Europe that is sometimes considered to be Eastern European. The country borders Poland to the northeast, Germany to the west and northwest, Austria to the south and Slovakia to the east. The capital and largest city is Prague...
and
PolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe . Poland is bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. In Hungary the first hyperstore opened in
BudaörsBudaörs is a town in Pest county, Budapest metropolitan area, Hungary. The town has a large German-speaking minority who call it Wudersch...
, a town in the
BudapestBudapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it serves as the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation center and is considered an important hub in Central Europe. In 2009, Budapest had 1,712,210 inhabitants, down from a mid-1980s...
metropolitan area, in 2002. In the Czech Republic the first Electro World store opened in Praha
ZlicinZličín can refer to several different places:*Zličín - cadastral area of Prague, Czech Republic*Zličín - metro station in Prague, Czech Republic...
in 2002. In
PolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe . Poland is bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
the first Electro World store was opened in October 2005 at the
TargowekTargówek is a district in Warsaw, Poland located in the northern part of the city.It is divided into two parts: residential and industrial. About 30% of the district's area is covered by municipal parks, such as Lasek Bródnowski, Park Bródnowski and Park Wiecha in the eastern part of the district...
commercial centre in
WarsawWarsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River roughly from both the Baltic Sea coast and the Carpathian Mountains. Its population as of 2009 was estimated at 1,709,781, and the Warsaw metropolitan area at approximately 2,785,000...
.
More stores have since opened in Hungary, the Czech Republic and Poland. Electro World operates a Central Europe distribution centre just outside
BrnoBrno is the second largest city in the Czech Republic, located in the southeast of the country. It was founded in 1243, although the area had been settled since the 5th century. As of August 2009 the population is 404,887...
in the Czech Republic. The warehouse is the largest warehouse for non-food goods in that country.
In 2009 DSGi has withdrawn from Hungary and Poland selling all their ElectroWorld outlets.
Partmaster
PartmasterPartmaster is a specialist retailer of electrical spares and accessories. They are part of the DSG International Group.- About Partmaster :...
is a specialist retailer of spares, consumables and accessories for brown and white goods with over 21 years experience in retailing electrical products. It stocks over 1 million lines.
Κωτσοβολος (Kotsovolos)
Kotsovolos is an electrical retailer in
GreeceGreece , officially the Hellenic Republic , is a country in southeastern Europe, situated on the southern end of the Balkan Peninsula....
. Since September 2009 it also operates PC City as a Store-in-store franchise. As of 2009 PC City exist only in Greece (Athens) and they operate inside Kotsovolos stores.
Elgiganten
ElgigantenElgiganten is an electrical retailer located in Denmark and Sweden.The stores are a brandname of Elkjøp owned by the British DSG International plc.Managing Director of Elgiganten is Jesper Boysen ....
("Electronics Giant") operates stores across
SwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe...
,
DenmarkDenmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe and the senior member of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries; southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and it is bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark borders both the Baltic and the North Sea...
and the
Faroe IslandsThe Faroe Islands, sometimes Faeroe Islands, Faroe, or Faeroes are an island group situated between the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, approximately halfway between Scotland and Iceland...
selling white goods, brown goods, consumer electronics, Personal Computers, communications products and related services.
Elkjøp
ElkjøpElkjøp is the largest electrical retailer in the Nordic countries, with over 264 stores across six countries and 6000 employees. It is owned by the British DSG International plc....
("Electronics Purchase") operates smaller, medium, big and XXL sized retail stores across Norway selling white goods, brown goods, consumer electronics, Personal Computers, communications products and related services.
Gigantti
Gigantti ("Gigant") operates retail stores across
FinlandFinland , officially the Republic of Finland
, is a Nordic country and democracy situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. It borders Sweden on the west, Russia on the east, and Norway on the north, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland...
selling white goods, brown goods, consumer electronics, personal computers, communications products and related services.
Lefdal Lavpris
Lefdal Lavpris operates larger retail stores across
NorwayNorway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a country in Northern Europe occupying the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, as well as Jan Mayen and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard under the Spitsbergen Treaty...
selling white goods, brown goods, consumer electronics, Personal Computers, communications products and related services.
UniEuro
UniEuro operates stores mostly in the north west and north east of Italy. The stores sell a mixture of high technology consumer electronics, personal computers, domestic appliances, photographic equipment, communication products and related services.
DSG Insurance Services
DSG Insurance Services offers customers insurance on the goods it sells.
PC World
PC World is a specialist chain of computer superstores.
PC City
PC CityPC City is a chain of computer superstores that operate in Spain, France and Italy. It is owned and operated by DSG International plc, and is equivalent to the PC World brand which operates in the United Kingdom and Ireland. PC World has the same logo except it reads PC World instead of PC City...
exists in
continental EuropeContinental Europe, also referred to as mainland Europe or simply the Continent, is the continent of Europe, explicitly excluding European islands and, at times, peninsulas. Notably, in British and Irish English usage, the term means Europe excluding the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, the Channel...
as an extension of the PC World chain. Beginning with the acquisition of Ei System in Spain, the company has expanded over the years and now has a presence in Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Greece and Sweden (website only).
DSGI Business
DSGI Business is a specialist provider of IT solutions to business and the public sector. The main operation is based in
BuryBury is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on the River Irwell, east of Bolton, west-southwest of Rochdale, and north-northwest of the city of Manchester. Bury is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, of which Bury is the...
, near Manchester. It operates under the PC World Business. Macwarehouse and Equanet brands, offering dedicated business account managers and highly-qualified technical experts to provide, manage and maintain business IT systems. The company has specialist PC World Business Business Centres in each of more than PC World stores across the country, offering immediate access to products. PC World Business sponsors the Daily Telegraph Business Club pages.
DSG Business Services
DSG Business Services sells goods to major customers and provides an account management system for them.
Genesis
Genesis Communications is the UK's largest independent mobile service provider, operating in the business to business sector. It has partnerships with the UK's major mobile networks and offers a full wireless service, including hardware, customer account management and billing. Genesis is also the UK's leading supplier of wireless data services to the SME market, including 3G and Blackberry solutions.
Pixmania
Pixmania is a pan-European e-commerce retailer. It is present in 26 countries and boasts 6 million clients in Europe. Besides the possibility to shop online the clients can shop and pick up their products directly from Pixmania showrooms (Paris, Boulogne-Billancourt, Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Nice, Toulouse, Rennes, Brussels, Milan, Torino, Rome, Madrid, Barcelona, Lisbon and Porto).
whateverhappens
whateverhappens is the rebranded successor of Coverplan. Currys stopped selling Coverplan in 2005, launching whateverhappens as its replacement. The product support is offered on most electrical purchases from Currys and now Currys.digital.
Fotovista
Fotovista is a French photographic business founded as Studio National in 1970 by brothers Pierre and Jean-Claude Rosenblum.
Former business brands and companies
Mastercare Commercial Services offered IT services to
ITInformation technology , as defined by the Information Technology Association of America , is "the study, design, development, implementation, support or management of computer-based information systems, particularly software applications and computer hardware." IT deals with the use of electronic...
businesses. A
call centreA call centre or call center is a centralised office used for the purpose of receiving and transmitting a large volume of requests by telephone. A call centre is operated by a company to administer incoming product support or information inquiries from consumers. Outgoing calls for telemarketing,...
provided telephone and email support, and a team of technicians and engineers provided repairs to PCs and laptops on site, and made inspections for insurance companies. The business was rebranded and merged with The TechGuys in September 2006. From 2008 the majority of all commercial work has been outsourced.
The Link is a UK mobile phone retailer. In June 2006 DSG sold its whole interest to O2. DSG still honours all contracts that exist with The Link but are no longer seeking new business.
FreeserveFreeserve was a UK Internet Service Provider, founded in 1998. It was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index but merged into the Wanadoo group in 2000, itself a subsidiary of France Telecom...
was purchased by
France TélécomFrance Télécom is the main telecommunications company in France, the third-largest in Europe and one of the largest in the world. It currently employs about 191,000 people and has nearly 159 million customers worldwide . In 2008 the group had revenue of €53.5 billion...
, and rebranded as
WanadooWanadoo is the former name of the ISP division of Orange SA, which is a subsidiary of France Télécom. It operated in France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Spain, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Senegal, Mauritius, Madagascar, Lebanon & Jordan...
. Wanadoo has since been rebranded again in the UK under the
OrangeOrange is the brand used by France Télécom for its mobile network operator and Internet service provider subsidiaries. The brand was created in 1994 for Hutchison Telecom's UK mobile phone network, which was acquired by France Télécom in August 2000. In 2006, the company's ISP operations,...
brand.
Freetalk was a failed Voice Over IP (VOIP) business.
Jakarta : For a few years during the late 1990s, DSG operated a chain of computer games shops, called Jakarta. They were in various high-traffic locations (such as Bluewater and Lakeside), but failed to get the market share deemed essential to keep the chain operating. It was closed down during the early 2000s
Financial results
The following table shows the Company's financial results:
DSG International plc financial results
| Fiscal Year |
2008 |
2007 |
2006 |
2005 |
2004 |
2003 |
2002 |
2001 |
2000 |
1999 |
1998 |
| Fiscal Year End Date |
03/05/08 |
28/04/07 |
29/04/06 |
30/04/05 |
01/05/04 |
03/05/03 |
27/04/02 |
28/04/01 |
29/04/00 |
01/05/99 |
02/05/98 |
| Turnover £ 000,000 |
8,545.9 |
7,929.7 |
7,072.0 |
6,982 |
6,491 |
5,750.5 |
4,888.2 |
4,688.2 |
3,889.9 |
3,156.3 |
2,791.9 |
| Profit before tax £ 000,000 |
(192.8) |
295.1 |
302.9 |
336.8 |
366.2 |
278.6 |
282.3 |
647.1 * |
472.1 * |
231.3 |
213.3 |
| Profit for the period £ 000,000 |
(259.7) |
2.4 |
211.7 |
243.1 |
289.4 |
207.8 |
211.2 |
602.6 |
413.7 |
186.2 |
166.4 |
| Basic eps Earnings per share are the earnings returned on the initial investment amount.In the US, the Financial Accounting Standards Board requires companies' income statements to report EPS for each of the major categories of the income statement: continuing operations, discontinued operations,...
(pThe British decimal one penny coin, produced by the Royal Mint, was issued on 15 February 1971, the day the British currency was decimalised. In practice, it had been available from banks in bags of £1 for some weeks previously...
) |
(14.5) |
10.9 |
11.7 |
12.6 |
14.4 |
10.7 |
11.0 |
31.5 |
22.5 |
41.1+ |
36.9+ |
*The above trend profits for 2000 and 2001 were primarily attributable
to profits on disposal of Freeserve shares. +Pre stock split.
Distribution
In the UK, distribution is by two different routes. The Home Delivery Centres (previously known as X-Docks) supply larger items throughout the country. These centres are at
BristolBristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, west of London, and east of Cardiff.With an estimated population of 416,400 for the unitary authority in mid-2007, and a surrounding urban area with an estimated 561,500 residents, it is England's sixth, and...
,
CardiffCardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for many national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for Wales. According to recent estimates, the...
,
LeedsLeeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. The historic core at the heart of Leeds in 2001 had an estimated subdivision population of 443,247, whilst the entire city, that includes the urban and suburban areas incorporated into the city in 1974, had an estimated...
,
Newton AycliffeNewton Aycliffe is a town in County Durham, England. Founded in 1947 under the New Towns Act of 1946, it is the oldest new town in the north of England. It has a population of 29,000 people , other reports put the population between 23,000 and 25,000...
,
EpsomEpsom is a town in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England. The town is located south-south-west of Charing Cross, within the Greater London Urban Area. The town lies on the chalk downland of Epsom Downs.-History:...
,
ErithErith is a place in the London Borough of Bexley, south east London on the River Thames. Erith's town centre has undergone a series of modernisations since 1961.-History :Pre-medieval...
,
PlymptonPlympton, or Plympton Maurice or Plympton St Maurice or Plympton Erle, in south-western Devon, England is an ancient stannary town: an important trading centre in the past for locally mined tin, and a former seaport...
,
SouthamptonSouthampton is the largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire, on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
and
PerivalePerivale is a small suburb 10 miles west of central London in the London Borough of Ealing. For most of its history, it was part of the county of Middlesex. Until the fifteenth century it was called Greenford Parva...
: they are supplied by two main stock centres (hubs) in Newark on Trent and
BristolBristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, west of London, and east of Cardiff.With an estimated population of 416,400 for the unitary authority in mid-2007, and a surrounding urban area with an estimated 561,500 residents, it is England's sixth, and...
. The second route, Customer Distribution Centres, supplies smaller items direct to customers by courier. Distribution to stores also happens via the same two routes.
External links