Equistone’s Apogee continues acquisition spree
A SIGNIFICANT investment from Manchester-based private equity firm Equistone has enabled Apogee Corporation Ltd to bolt on Hibernian Business Equipment, an Irish print management provider.
The deal, which gives the £120m turnover company with a new Irish footprint, marks the second acquisition since Equistone provided investment in September.
Apogee, which is headquartered in Maisdstone but has a large operation in Manchester at Heald Green, has completed acquisitions in Scotland, Wales and Germany this year and will continue to make further strategic acquisitions to drive growth in the UK and Europe.
Based in Limerick, County Tipperary with additional offices in Dublin and Galway, Hibernian provides print technology and services to both the public and private sector and the company has an installed base of 3,000 networked devices, which it supports through its own in-house service operations.
Jason Collins, Apogee joint chief executive, said: “Apogee already has a number of Irish clients who historically we supported through our mainland-based resources and partners, but through this acquisition we now have a new operational base in Ireland. Hibernian is a really strong, well developed business with great coverage, operations and technical expertise and I’m really pleased that we have completed the acquisition.
“I’m also delighted that Gerald Wall, who founded the Hibernian business 25 years ago, will lead the new Apogee business in Ireland as we integrate Hibernian into the Apogee Group.”
Gerald Wall, Hibernian’s managing director, said: “This is an exciting time for all the team at Hibernian. The business has grown at a terrific rate in recent years and we have secured some great clients but as part of Apogee we will have an even more compelling offering in the marketplace.
“Access to Apogee’s range of unique agreements, increased purchasing power and specialist resources of project management and professional services will help us compete for larger organisations and I’m looking forward to winning new business as part of the Apogee Group.”
