The Computer Hut

Information technology firm The Computer Hut LLC began in 1992 as a home-based business, something his ex-wife started in college and the two of them worked at on the side while they were married, said CEO Chris Bates.

It took off later, thanks to a few acquisition opportunities. The first came in 2001; that’s when Bates left his full-time job for The Computer Hut.

Another acquisition opportunity came a few years later, and a small office opened in Bentonville. It serviced a large banking client Bates didn’t want to name.

An acquisition in 2016 led to the opening of a Texarkana office, and another last October led to the opening of a Jonesboro office.

“It’s been a great last couple of years,” Bates said. “We’ve experienced some good growth. We’re at four locations and 33 to 34 people. [We’re] real excited about where things are going.”

He said a lot has changed since the company’s early days. For example, it isn’t service call-based anymore, offering flat-rate billing instead. There are plans to hire more employees, too.

“In our world, it’s really about becoming more and more security-focused,” Bates explained. “We’re trying to keep up with it and get as ahead of it as we can, and, of course, at some point, that takes more talent, more people.”

Companies like his are all selling the same thing, he said, so customer service is what separates The Computer Hut from the herd. “At the end of the day, we’re just a customer service business that just happens to solve problems with technology. And so we try to be hyper-focused on service excellence,” Bates said.

Bates said he values teamwork, accountability, perseverance, thought leadership and relationship building. He wants his clients to be comfortable calling, even when they’re upset.

Bates said he kept The Computer Hut going after his divorce from its founder because he liked solving problems with technology and the business side of it. “I just loved the business of business,” he said. “I was just enamored with building it and growing it.”

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