Timeline

This year marked the beginning of serious IT activities. Our customer base expanded, new colleagues were hired, and the name "Lesscher Computers" was displayed on the storefront. Growth continued, and in subsequent years, the company rebranded as Lesscher IT: a modern and professional service provider with activities divided into Software Development, Automation, Staffing, and Telecommunications.

In 1999, a partnership with Heutink Primary Education in Rijssen led to the creation of a sister company, Heutink ICT, focused exclusively on the education market. The organization quickly expanded to 75 employees.

After moving to a new facility in Weerselo, another space was required within ten years. Lesscher IT selected a prominent location on Platinastraat in Hengelo as its new base.

With rapid growth and expanding services, Lesscher IT moved beyond its original PC-building roots. As datacenter and cloud services gained traction, Hans Lesscher acquired Introweb, a company with its own datacenter and cloud solutions expertise. This acquisition marked the start of various outsourcing services.

Due to the success of datacenter and cloud services, a new datacenter was built on Barnsteenstraat in Hengelo. At that time, it became one of the largest datacenters outside the Randstad. This growth led to a new name: Previder, a company offering a wide range of managed services that would benefit the entire group.

To keep up with rapid developments, a new organizational model was introduced in 2007. This structured the organization into distinct divisions, laying the foundation for the overarching entity Odin Group, established in 2010.

Under Odin Group, Heutink ICT became a leading digitalization player in education. To bolster this growth, two acquisitions were made. KPN’s StationtoStation was acquired, followed by ICTPrimair (later renamed Reinders ICT) to strengthen presence in the south of the Netherlands.

When custom software was required, it was developed in-house. In 2012, this internal team gained its own name, Web2Work, marking the start of a new company specializing in online portals, SharePoint, and web apps.

A pivotal year for Odin Group was 2008, when it purchased the Expo Center in Hengelo. This site housed a massive datacenter for Previder and later, by 2013, became the headquarters for Odin Group and all affiliated companies.

In early 2017, Lesscher IT merged with Previder to form a stronger organization, setting a solid foundation for further growth. This merger allowed end-users, IT service providers, and software developers to be served by a single, powerful organization.

To further its growth ambitions and strengthen its role as a leading Microsoft partner, Winvision joined Odin Group in April 2018. Winvision, with 140 employees, gained access to the group’s facilities and expertise. Odin Group grew to 470 employees, and Winvision opened a new office in Hengelo the following year.

This year, Web2Work ceased operations due to overlapping activities with other companies. Educational services moved to Heutink ICT, while business services integrated with Winvision, creating clearer focus across business activities.

It was time for the next step: Fortino Capital Partners acquired a stake in Odin Groep, an independent ICT provider supporting digital transformation. Fortino became a strategic partner to further Odin Groep’s growth ambitions.

In 2020, Odin Groep strengthened its position in central Netherlands by acquiring Platani, an infrastructure, cloud, and workplace knowledge partner based in Vianen. Platani's 40 employees joined Previder’s team, opening a Previder location in Vianen.

With support from Fortino Capital, Odin Groep acquired Unified, a managed IT services specialist for the housing sector, which became part of Previder as Previder Corporaties.

Apax Partners, a leading private equity firm in Europe, acquired a majority stake in Odin Groep with Odin’s founder and management, aiming to further strengthen Odin Groep’s position in the Dutch market through organic growth and acquisitions.

Apax Partners, shareholder in Odin Groep, rebranded as Seven2, a nod to the year Apax was founded.

Odin Groep acquired customer-specific hosting services for accountants from Exact, strengthening its position as a managed services provider in the Netherlands. Odin Groep took on 17 employees and the related customer portfolio.

To strengthen its presence in the education sector, Odin Groep acquired Cloudwise, an IT service provider specializing in education. Cloudwise continued its operations with its current leadership while gaining full access to Odin Groep’s resources.

Odin Groep acquired Global-e ICT Solutions & Global-e Datacenter, expanding its presence in the southern Netherlands. The 35 employees and customer base of Global-e were integrated into Previder.

Odin Groep acquired IT company 2invision Managed Services from the Belgian Crescent Group, enhancing its market presence in southern Netherlands and entering the Belgian market. The 30 employees and customer base of 2invision were fully integrated.