History & Milestones

1997

  • With a vision to transform the complex wireless distribution market, 26 year old Marcelo Claure founds Brightstar Corp. in October 1997 in Miami, FL. With a handful of employees, the company begins trading wireless devices to customers in Latin America

1998

  • Company’s first international facilities open in Bolivia and Brazil to provide more localized support and help accelerate mobile products to market
  • Brightstar’s unique, market-centric approach shows great success, ending its first full year of operations with revenues of $73 million

1999

  • Brightstar begins customization and production capabilities for mobile devices, delivering just in time products to network operators
  • Noting high growth potential, Brightstar establishes a local team in Mexico to serve Latin America’s largest mobile telephone market* Further expanding its in-country presence, Brightstar expands into the Caribbean with facility in Dominican Republic and also adds team in Paraguay* Company doubles year over year revenues, posting $141 million in sales

2000

  • Seeing a need to provide services that expand beyond distribution, Brightstar diversifies its business, creating a sophisticated Supply Chain Solutions division which focuses on reducing operational costs and increasing speed to market for network operators
  • Brightstar signs first supply chain contract with Codetel in Dominican Republic
  • Company signs strategic distribution agreement with Motorola for all of Latin America
  • Brightstar’s strategy for local support is further augmented with launch of subsidiaries in Argentina, Uruguay, Venezuela and Ecuador markets
  • The company once again more than doubles revenues, ending the year with $355 million in sales

2001

  • With international expansion in its sights, Brightstar creates a next generation model of distribution, entering the highly competitive US market
  • Brightstar further extends its reach in Latin America via new subsidiaries in Peru and El Salvador
  • Marcelo Claure, Brightstar’s Founder & CEO, recognized as the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year® for building Brightstar into a $355 million company in just over three years
  • Company and founder begin to amass further awards and recognition for outstanding growth
    • Claure receives Personalidad Iberomericana del ano 2001 award by the Organización de Periodistas Iberoamericanos
    • #1 Hispanic Exporter & #8 largest Hispanic-owned business by Hispanic Business Magazine
    • #3 Privately Owned Hispanic Company in Florida by the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce on their Top 100 list
    • Excellence in Marketing award from wireless trade association
  • 2001 revenues are $630 million

2002

  • Anticipating growth in data-centric devices, Brightstar establishes a division focused on smart devices including phones, modems and broadband products
  • To better serve customer needs, Brightstar creates a manufacturing division, focused first on the design, development and creative of fixed wireless phones for Latin America
  • Marcelo Claure & Brightstar continue to receive accolades and honors
    • Marcelo Claure receives honorary doctorate from alma mater Bentley College where he gives commencement speech to undergraduate class
    • Marcelo Claure is named Entrepreneur of the Year in the Rising Star category of Hispanic Business magazine
    • Brightstar becomes #6 largest Hispanic-owned business in U.S.
    • Brightstar wins Cutting Edge award by Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce
    • Brightstar is listed as #3 on the Top 100 Hispanic Businesses in Florida by Hispanic Business Magazine
  • Brightstar ends 2002 with $849 million in revenues

2003

  • Brightstar achieves major milestone, reaching $1 billion in sales by mid-year, making it only the third Hispanic-owned business in history to reach the $1 billion sales mark
  • Brightstar attracts private placement funding in excess of $61 million to drive further growth
  • Brightstar establishes its first global manufacturing operation, a +34,000 sq. ft. facility in Mexico and expands footprint into Colombia & Puerto Rico
  • Recognition for success becomes widespread** Marcelo Claure graces the cover of Hispanic Business magazine and is recognized as the 2003 Entrepreneur of the Year ** In the same month, Inc. Magazine does cover story on Marcelo Claure & Brightstar** Brightstar grows to #2 Hispanic-owned business in the country by Hispanic Business Magazine** Marcelo Claure receives Entrepreneurial Spirit Award from the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce** Brightstar is named as the #1 Privately Owned Hispanic Business in Miami by the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce
  • Company ends the year exceeding $1.2 Billion in revenues

2004

  • Brightstar goes global, opening Australian subsidiary, headquartered in Melbourne, Hong Kong subsidiary to expand into Asia Pacific regions and re-enters Brazilian market, a top five wireless market in the world
  • Brightstar builds a state-of-the-art facility in Tierra del Fuego, Argentina to further stimulate industrialization of the region
  • Company becomes a sponsor of the MIT Media Lab to explore new products and technologies. Eventually this sponsorship will lead to the creation of the One Laptop per Child program, which brings low cost laptops to children in underserved countries.
  • Brightstar continues to be recognized for growth and business achievements
  • Company posts $1.7 Billion in revenues

2005

  • Verizon Wireless appoints Brightstar as its authorized distributor in the U.S.
  • Telstra, Australia’s largest company, designates Brightstar as its exclusive sourcing partner
  • Brightstar expands its Asia presence into India, one of the largest and fastest growing markets, with presence in 23 billing points and two local hubs in Mumbai and Delhi
  • Marcelo Claure noted for entrepreneurial achievements** Named as 50 Most Important Hispanics by Hispanic Engineer & Information Technology Magazine
    • Named 100 Top Hispanic Entrepreneurs by Hispanic Trends
    • Awarded the Arthur Tanner Entrepreneurship Award by Northwood University
  • Brightstar surpasses $2.25 billion in revenue

2006

  • Brightstar becomes #1 in the world in only 9 years of operation. Company recognized as largest global wireless distribution and supply chain solutions company
  • Mitsui & Co., Ltd. announces a $50 million investment in Brightstar Corp.
  • A joint venture establishes Brightstar’s presence in the Middle East & Northern Africa
  • Brightstar continues to pursue high growth market opportunities with new sales and distribution centers in South Africa, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines
  • Achievements include:
  • Brightstar is named as #2 on the 100 Fastest Growing U.S. Hispanic-Owned companies list by Hispanic Business Magazine
  • Brightstar receives Good to Great Award by the Tri-County Chambers of Commerce for Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach
  • Marcelo Claure is named as a National Finalist for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award
  • Company ends the year with $4.3 billion in gross revenues

2007

  • Tech Data, a Global Fortune 500 company, partners with Brightstar to enter the European mobile device distribution market. The company now serves customers in over 50 countries on six continents worldwide
  • Brightstar receives $283 million in equity financing from New York-based Lindsay Goldberg
  • Brightstar is given the key to the City of Miami
  • Brightstar, for the first time, becomes the #1 largest Hispanic-owned business in the US, of over 1.2 million Hispanic-owned companies throughout the country.
  • Brightstar is named #91 largest private company in the US by Forbes Magazine
  • Brightstar is named #1 in the Top 100 Companies by Dollars of Growth by Inc. 5000 Magazine
  • Brightstar is named a Global Growth Company by the World Economic Forum
  • Marcelo Claure is named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum
  • Marcelo Claure is named CEO of the Year by Latinos in Information Sciences and Technology Association (LISTA)
  • Brightstar is named #1 on the MBN 100 list of Diverse Suppliers by Minority Business News Magazine
  • Marcelo Claure is the recipient of the Up & Comer Award from the South Florida Business Journal
  • Marcelo Claure receives the Pinnacle of Success Award from Carlos Albizu University for individuals and organizations that have made outstanding contributions to their professions and communities
  • Brightstar celebrates its ten year anniversary, and ends the year with $4.8 billion in gross revenues, and facilities in 50 countries worldwide.

2008

  • Brightstar enters 2008 with a strong leadership position. One of every 20 wireless devices sold globally were delivered by Brightstar
  • Telecom New Zealand signs a five-year agreement with Brightstar to distribute Telecom’s mobile devices, manage supply chain services and warehouse operations
  • Brightstar wins an exclusive supply chain services contract with Vodafone Turkey, the country’s second largest mobile phone operator
  • Brightstar is again named the largest Hispanic-owned business in the U.S. by Hispanic Business Magazine
  • Brightstar is featured as a Global Growth Company by the World Economic Forum in Tianjin, China
  • Brightstar is named the 108th largest privately held company in the U.S. by Forbes Magazine
  • The Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce names Brightstar as its Outstanding Minority Business of the Year in its annual Top 100 Minority Business Awards program
  • Brightstar creates strategy for its growth and dominance in the next 10 years via the creation of its vision statement:
    • To be the world’s most innovative customized distribution and supply chains solutions company to the converged telecom industry

2009

  • Brightstar awarded an exclusive supply chain services contract with CSL Limited, Hong Kong’s leading mobile network operator.
  • Brightstar Europe, a joint venture between Tech Data and Brightstar Corp., expand their business operations into Germany in line with their pan-European growth strategy.
  • Brightstar is named the largest Hispanic-owned business in the U.S. for the third year, holding this position since 2007
  • The company wins a supply chain contract with mobile operators CSL in Hong Kong, and Alegro in Ecuador. It also signs a Pan-European agreement with RIM to distribute BlackBerry products and is named as a Samsung distributor in Malaysia
  • Brightstar is awarded several U.S. patents for wireless innovations