Meet the founder: World Host Group's Tom Strohe

World Host Group (‘WHG’) is a leading web hosting and domain name provider, with 25+ brands and a global customer base. In 2023, Oakley partnered with Tom Strohe and Jochen Berger, veteran hosting entrepreneurs, to invest in Webcentral through a carve out from its Australian listed parent.

Webcentral subsequently merged with WHG, doubling the size of the business. This is Oakley’s fifth successful collaboration with founders Tom and Jochen after a decade of building successful hosting businesses together. It also marks the beginning of an ambitious roll up in the global, highly fragmented shared hosting market.

About the founders

Tom Strohe and Jochen Berger founded their first venture in their bedrooms as teenagers, before going on to build several successful businesses. Over the last 13 years, Oakley has partnered with them to create five, highly successful companies including Intergenia, HEG, WebPros and Contabo. This strong track record reflects Oakley’s approach to building long-lasting, repeat partnerships with exceptional founders and entrepreneurs, where lessons learned can be applied to new investments in the same or adjacent sector, as well as new geographies.

About the market

Hosting can be described as part of the plumbing that underpins the entire internet. It has facilitated tech developments that have transformed the way we work and live, accelerating trends such as e-commerce, cloud migration, remote working, and online gaming. While often hidden, hosting is crucial to sustaining modern life. What we do see are the websites that “live” on the servers owned and managed by hosting companies.

The demand for hosting services has surged alongside the explosion of online shopping and digitalization of businesses, particularly among SMEs, since the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the shared hosting sector remains a highly fragmented industry, with many small hosting businesses scattered around the globe. These businesses often serve local customers but lack the financial and operational resources to enhance their service offerings and compete effectively on a larger scale.

What’s next for World Host Group

Combining Webcentral with WHG is just the start. With the support and industry insight of Tom and Jochen, WHG’s management team, led by hosting entrepreneur Seb de Lemos, has built an extensive pipeline of acquisition opportunities worldwide, including in India, Brazil, and the USA. Post acquisition, WHG works with its new businesses to improve customer service, from boosting response and resolution time, to enhancing technical excellence by investing in upskilling and training, cutting-edge infrastructure, security protocols and software solutions.

How has the journey been with Oakley so far?

About Tom

Tom founded his first company in his bedroom when he was just 15 years old. It became a European market leader within a matter of a few years. Since then he’s helped to build 20+ successful hosting businesses either as a founder or as an investor. He’s been involved in the webhosting industry for over 25 years.