Climb’s Dale Foster on 2025 Growth & 2026 Goals

As 2025 races to a close, we spoke with Climb CEO Dale Foster about the company’s quarter three earnings results and how he wants to take the momentum built this year into a strong 2026.

Climb continues to grow as vendors join linecard and partners seek support

Climb’s third-quarter earnings report shows another quarter of growth in key areas and continues the trend of growth the company has charted throughout the year.

Net sales in the third quarter of 2025 increased 35% to $161.3 million compared to $119.3 million for the same period in 2024. Gross profit in the third quarter of this year also increased compared to the same quarter a year ago, jumping 6% to $25.7 million compared to $24.3 million.

Foster says that while the results are promising, the year has posed several challenges, and he’s happy to see the company move through them successfully.

“We’re small compared to many of our competitors, so we can be nimble and change as the market changes relatively quickly,” said Foster.

Looking ahead, Foster says he and the leadership team are focused on strategic growth opportunities through both organic initiatives, such as vendor expansion across regions, and additional M&A.

“We haven’t done an acquisition in almost a year, and I’m getting beat up a bit for it, but we’ve been diligent about who that might be,” Foster said, adding he would still like to see another deal close by the end of this year or soon into 2026.

Additionally, Foster says he’s bullish on the opportunity to grow Climb next year in part because the company knew 2025 would be a trial period of sorts. Climb changed its ERP system and brought on a new financial officer in late 2024, and Foster thinks that, following a full year of building and testing in 2025, the company is well-positioned to accelerate growth next year.

Why Foster sees the public sector as strength and opportunity for growth

In November, Climb Channel Solutions announced it was awarded the OMNIA Partners contract for Software and SaaS Solutions, facilitated by the lead public agency, Region 14 Education Service Center.

To Foster, the contract is an extension of the education practice it hopes to expand into a broader focus on public-sector opportunities.

“The OMNIA agreement is especially important for us following the growth in K-12 and higher ed we gained in the DSS acquisition. We’re looking at the vendors we have with our partners and determining ways we can focus on the public sector a bit more, in education and with other partners,” Foster said.

“A lot of that touches Adobe right now, so why not also take non-competing vendors into those deals,” he added.

For resellers, this contract opens new doors to public-sector opportunities by simplifying access to Climb’s offerings through a pre-vetted, compliant purchasing framework. With certified sales teams, in-territory expertise, and a relationship-driven approach, Climb is uniquely equipped to support resellers in navigating public-sector sales, accelerating deal cycles, and scaling their businesses. 

The OMNIA partnership ensures that resellers can confidently engage with public agencies, knowing they’re backed by a nationally recognized contract and a distributor committed to their growth.

2026: balancing emerging vendors with meeting partner demand for key players

Foster has previously explained to Channel Insider why Climb is so particular about the vendors offered to its partners. He says the company has added headcount to vet potential new vendors more quickly as it continues to consider additional opportunities.

To him, the strategy will remain centered on being particular about its process. Still, the sheer number of emerging vendors entering the market has given Climb a wide range of opportunities.

“I still want to keep it limited, but there’s just so much out there we could bring, so that’s always a consideration,” Foster said.

This also means channel partners might see Climb add larger (and more well-known) vendors to its linecard in 2026.

“We hear a lot from partners who say, ‘we really like what you’re doing and we love the high-touch approach, but we wish we could do more with you,’ and we’re always taking partner feedback into account,” Foster said. “For us, it’s a real balancing act. We don’t want to bring in a vendor so large it changes our processes and approach to support, but we will continue to evaluate that.”