MicroAge

Frontier Technology, LLC,^[1] doing business as MicroAge, is a privately-held American technology products and services company founded in 1976 and based in Phoenix, Arizona.

Frontier Technology, LLC

Founded	1976; 48 years ago (1976) Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.
Founder	Jeffrey D. McKeever Alan P. Hald
Headquarters	Phoenix, Arizona , United States
Key people	Rob Zack, CEO; Tracey Hayes, VP-Sales; Larry Fulop, VP-Technology & Marketing; Larry Gentry, EVP-Services; Tim McCulloch, CTO
Products	Technology
Website	microage.com

History

In 1976, founders Jeffrey D. McKeever and Alan Hald opened one of the first hobby computer stores in the United States, The Byte Shop, in Tempe, Arizona. The company grew quickly and, in 1979, opened the first MicroAge Computer Store at Paradise Valley Mall in Phoenix, Arizona. The store sold computers popular in the early home computer age, such as the Apple II, NorthStar Horizon, IMSAI 8080 and Altair 8800.

MicroAge developed into a major national distributor as well as having its own chain of stores, becoming the most widely known franchiser in the computer industry with over 1,400 franchises worldwide, including locations in Europe, Japan and the USSR. Its primary competitor at the time was ComputerLand, another well-known franchising operation. The company was listed on the Fortune 500 list from 1995 to 2001. It employed over 6,000 people and generated revenues in excess of $6 billion at its zenith.

By February 2000, the company was composed of four subsidiary parts: MicroAge Teleservices, MicroAge Technology Services, Pinacor, and Quality Integration Services.^[2] In November 2000, MicroAge Teleservices was sold to that subsidiary's largest customer, United Parcel Service.^[3][4] In December 2000, MicroAge Technology Services was sold to CompuCom, included MicroAge's network of service and support locations.^[5] In May 2001 some assets of Pinacor were sold to ScanSource.^[6]

On October 1, 2020, MicroAge announced that it had acquired Semaphore Co., an Atlanta-based cloud services organization.^[7]

On July 15, 2022, MicroAge announced that it had acquired cStor, a cybersecurity, infrastructure, and digital transformation organization based in Scottsdale, Arizona, for an undisclosed sum.^[8]

References

1. "Legal Information: Terms & Conditions". MicroAge.com. Archived from the original on April 5, 2024. Retrieved April 7, 2024.
2. MicroAge Inc. Annual Report For Fiscal Year Ending 10-31-99 (Form 10-K), U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, February 14, 2000, archived from the original on November 13, 2019, retrieved November 13, 2019
3. "UPS would own LV call center under proposal". Las Vegas Sun. November 13, 2000. Archived from the original on November 13, 2019. Retrieved April 7, 2024.
4. Walter, Nicholas (May 11, 2010). "UPS call center to close". Santa Maria Sun. Archived from the original on April 7, 2024. Retrieved April 7, 2024.
5. "MicroAge sells subsidiary". Phoenix Business Journal. December 22, 2000. Archived from the original on February 18, 2006. Retrieved April 7, 2024.
6. Weinstein, Randi (May 1, 2001). "MicroAge subsidiary sold for $21M". Phoenix Business Journal. Archived from the original on June 18, 2004. Retrieved April 7, 2024.
7. "Semaphore Co Joins MicroAge in Move to Corner Cloud Technology Services Market". MicroAge. October 1, 2020. Archived from the original on October 23, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2024 – via PR Newswire.
8. Trumbull, Ty (July 18, 2022). "Microsoft Partner MicroAge Acquires cStor". ChannelE2E. Archived from the original on July 18, 2022. Retrieved July 20, 2022.