Our History
Family Owned & Operated
MicroAge Basics is operated by Bluewater Office Equipment, Ltd, and has been family owned & operated since 1984. There are currently five Peet family members working within the organization, which helps to ensure that customer service and quality remains our number one goal.
In the Beginning...
Founded in 1984, Bluewater Office Equipment Ltd. is a privately owned family business serving Southwestern Ontario. The original location in Goderich, primarily serviced and sold Photocopiers, Fax Machines, Computer Equipment, Typewriters and Word Processors.
In 1987, after a relocation, Bluewater Office Equipment greatly expanded Office Supply and Furniture Products.
Growth
In 1988 an opportunity presented itself and a second, satellite location was opened in the town of Wingham. This opportunity allowed Bluewater Office Equipment to better serve and increase the northern end of their service area.
Alliances
In 1992, Bluewater Office Equipment joined Multimicro as a franchisee, under the MicroAge Group. Multimicro - Canada's largest network of computer ressellers - has many groups including the Compucentre, CompuSmart and Northwest Digital groups.
In 1998 Bluewater Office Equipment joined the BASICS buying group and changed their operating name, to reflect these alliances, to MicroAge Basics. While no operating or ownership changes were made, the name change helped establish MicroAge Basics as a member of two nationwide organizations.
The BASICS buying group is the largest office supply buying group in Canada. Owned by its Canadian Members, BASICS has dealers from coast to coast.