Climb Global Solutions – connecting businesses with emerging technologies in the channel for 40+ years. Learn how far we’ve come and stay tuned to see where we are going.
Climb Global Solutions is a company with a rich history dating back over four decades. Its journey began in 1986 when Lifeboat Associates, a software distributor in the US, was acquired by Voyager Software Corporation. This acquisition marked the beginning of a new era for Lifeboat, as it became part of a larger organization with expanded resources and capabilities.
Over the years, Lifeboat continued to grow and expand its operations, becoming a publicly traded company in 1995 and changed its name to Lifeboat Distribution to reflect its focus on software distribution.
In January 2020, Dale Foster was appointed CEO of Lifeboat Distribution, bringing with him over 20 years of experience in the technology industry. Under his leadership, the company continued to expand, acquiring Toronto-based Interwork Technologies in April 2020.
One month later, in May 2020, Wayside Technology Group, the parent company of Lifeboat Distribution, announced a rebranding of the business to “Climb Channel Solutions”. This new brand identity was meant to reflect the company’s new direction targeting emerging growth partners and focused mission to help its partners and customers “climb to new heights” in their businesses.
The growth and expansion of Climb Channel Solutions continued throughout 2020, with the acquisition of UK-based CDF Group Limited, the parent company of Grey Matter, Sigma Software Distribution and Cloud Know How, in November of that year. This acquisition allowed Climb to expand its reach in the UK market and offer a wider range of products and services to its customers.
In January 2021, Climb Channel Solutions launched Climb Elevate. Climb Elevate is a sister company to Climb that provides simple, streamlined quote to ship services for emerging brands that are not yet ready to invest in marketing, enablement and distribution sales engagement. Later that year, in August, Climb also launched their Expedition Cloud Marketplace to further support their MSP providers and build an important position in the MSP space.
Climb’s growth and expansion continued into 2022, with the acquisition of UK-based Spinnakar Limited by Wayside Technology Group in August of that year. This acquisition allowed Climb to further expand its operations in the UK market and enhance its product offerings.
In October 2022, Wayside Technology Group announced another rebranding, this time to “Climb Global Solutions”. This new brand identity reflects Climb’s evolution from a software distributor to a global provider of technology solutions and services. The company’s ticker symbol also changed from “WSTG” to “CLMB” to reflect this new brand identity.
To continue to utilize their acquisitions, Climb Channel Solutions launched Level 1 and Level 2 technical support services to their customers through Cloud Know How in January 2023, expanding their offerings to better assist their partners and customer base.
As of mid-2023, Climb has many milestones to note, including:
- $1B Revenue in 2022
- 100+ Transacting Vendors
- 7000+ Transacting Resellers
- 1500+ Transacting MSPs
- 70 Focus Vendors
- 22 Specialty Vendors with dedicated Brand Sales Specialists
- 16+ World Wide Territories
- 3 Acquisitions to date
As well as additional offerings, such as:
- Expedition Cloud Marketplace for MSPs
- Level 1 & 2 technical support services
- Contract Vehicles (GSA, NCPA, CMAS)
The story of Climb Global Solutions is one of growth, expansion, and evolution. From its beginnings as Lifeboat Associates in the 1980s to its current status as a global technology solutions provider, Climb has continued to adapt and innovate to meet the changing needs of its partners and customers. With its focus on providing the best possible solutions and services to its customers, Climb is poised to continue its upward climb for many years to come.
