On the local business scene, a well-known Edmonton computer company has gone national. The OA Group of Companies is in the process of a major national expansion and is in the process of going public. According to information on the comapny's Web site, OA has filed a preliminary prospectus with securities regulators in Alberta for an initial public offering of its common shares. The company will seek to raise a total of $2,000,000.00 to fund its expansion plans.
Fugi Saito, National Sales Manager for the Internet Division, has seen the comapny grow exponentially voer the years since its birth in 1990, "from one owner and a couple of employees to now we are close to 150 employees. We have two offices in Edmonton, two in Calgary, one in Red Deer and one in Mississauga." As for how OA is continuting to grow, Saito says that "The Internet allows an easy venue for expansion, we have local dial-ups pools in Vancouver, Winnipeg, Ottawa and most of Alberta as well as over 500 local dial-up pools in cities the United States that our users can access our network through. David Papp, the Architect of the Network is the primary driving force behind the expansion. He is young and brilliant." In an industry where, as Saito explains, "growth often means survival," OA's Edmonton roots will not be compromised, as the main base of operations will continue here.
