Buy it Direct

Who owns Buy it Direct?

Buy it Direct was owned by BGF through BGF (2011 vintage) from 2019 to 2026, exited via Trade Sale.

Hand-verified · updated 2026-07-14

About Buy it Direct

Buy It Direct Group is one of the United Kingdom's largest privately owned online retailers, selling home appliances, IT and electronics, and furniture to consumers and businesses through a family of specialist websites. Its brands include Appliances Direct, Laptops Direct, Drones Direct, Furniture123, Better Bathrooms, Servers Direct and Outdoor Living, each targeting a distinct product category under a shared value-led, direct-to-customer model. The group is headquartered in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, and operates more than two million square feet of warehousing along with collection points in the region. It employs over 1,000 people, and its turnover grew from GBP 248.8 million in the year to March 2019 to GBP 295.5 million in the year to March 2020, with management subsequently describing the business as a roughly GBP 350 million turnover operation.

Ownership journey

Buy It Direct was founded in 1999 by Nick Glynne, beginning as a high street computer repair shop in Huddersfield before expanding into e-commerce and building out its portfolio of specialist retail brands. In 2019 BGF invested in the business, taking a minority position to support the founder-led company's long-term growth strategy while Nick Glynne remained chief executive. BGF backed the group through a period of scale-up in headcount, warehousing and category expansion. BGF is recorded as having exited in 2026 via a trade sale, and the business is now listed as a realised investment in its portfolio.

Under PE ownership

The 2019 investment was directed at accelerating the group's growth, with the company signalling plans to expand its workforce from close to 700 people toward 1,000 in the following years. Over the holding period Buy It Direct grew turnover from GBP 248.8 million in the year to March 2019 to GBP 295.5 million a year later, and headcount passed 1,000 employees. The group widened its brand stable across appliances, IT, furniture, bathrooms and outdoor categories, and expanded its logistics footprint to more than two million square feet of warehousing supporting a multi-brand, direct-to-customer model. By the time of BGF's exit the business had reached roughly GBP 350 million in turnover, per management commentary.