THE DIVESTMENT CAMPAIGN
Our Client
Based in Melbourne, BusinessWorks is an IT services provider focused on the SME segment in its regional marketplace. The Business offers a mix of high value-add services centred around a core Managed Services offering. Those subscription based services are complimented by stand-alone Solutions Services – the project-based consulting, design & deployment of small business IT solutions using today’s leading-edge technologies – as well as On-Demand Support Services, which comprise ad-hoc fee-for-service jobs completed through full-service in-house workshop. BusinessWorks’s one-stop offering and high service levels differentiate it from competitors in a highly fragmented market.
The effectiveness of BusinesWorks’s business model is reflected in its long-tenured customer-base and also in the consistency of revenue growth and profitability achieved over the five financial years through FY17. In 2017, having established and grown the Business for +20 years, BusinessWorks’s owner sought to exit in order to focus more of his energy and resources towards personal interests and eventual retirement. As a specialist mid-market business broker, Johnsons was engaged to manage a divestment campaign targeting strategic buyers, who would be prepared to continue servicing the Business’s clients while retaining its loyal staff.
The Business Sales Strategy
As an acquisition, BusinessWorks presented an attractive bolt-on opportunity for another business and featured an established customer-base delivering recurring revenues and strong gross margins. Looking forward, the Business anticipates continued strong uptake of its managed services offering, being well-positioned in the context of strong demand drivers projected for the IT infrastructure and managed services sectors and as regards broader industry & technology trends.
Johnsons Corporate’s custom research & marketing focused on commercial enterprises in the Australia’s IT Services sector as a primary market and also covered a number of other related technology services & product supply sectors. Johnsons ran a proactive direct marketing campaign that uncovered +30 qualified, interested parties. Further vetting and negotiations resulted in the selection of a preferred buyer as well as a backup buyer, with Offer and Acceptance secured within 14 weeks of going to market.
(Read more about how using a Specialised Mid-Market Business Broker Approach to selling your business could get you a better outcome – just like our client).
The Related Trade Buyer
Based in NSW, the acquirer, Hal Group, is a complete IT services company that offers a wide range of solutions to the SME, corporate and government sectors. The acquisition presented an opportunity to extend its geographic reach to include Victoria as well as to expand its managed services offering.
What Our Client Had to Say
"After meeting with Johnsons Corporate to discuss our objectives, we felt confident that their strategic and proactive approach was the right fit for us. They presented well, had a strong record of accomplishment, and spent a great deal of time working through the dynamics of the sale process before we ultimately engaged their services... I was very impressed with the service provided by Johnsons Corporate and would highly recommend them to anyone considering a sale of their business."
Brad McMillan, Director - BusinessWorks