September 10, 2024
Elovade takes over Swedish distributors Inuit AB to continue its pan-European growth
Wetzlar, Germany, September 10th, 2024 – The value-added software distributor Elovade, which has been in business for almost 30 years, and its investors HQ Equita and Verdane have announced the acquisition of Swedish distributors Inuit AB. The acquisition of Inuit AB will enable the Elovade Group to grow its current product portfolio by adding further interesting solutions in the core segments of IT security and infrastructure software. Back in 2021, HQ Equita assisted the company set up a branch office in Switzerland and integrate the German IT security distributor 8Soft; further successful M&A projects followed in 2022 with the acquisition of Italian MSP distributors ACHAB and the Swedish VAD Innosoft.
Participatory interest of HQ Equita and Verdane
The experienced private equity investor HQ Equita has been part of Elovade’s success story since 2019. And at the start of 2024, the VAD joined forces with another financially robust and experienced partner in the form of private equity investor Verdane, specializing in sustainable growth and value creation. Hand in hand with the two investors, the directors of the corporate group, Philip Weber and Marcus Zeidler, are driving forward Elovade’s proven growth strategy.
Thus, since HQ Equita came on board in 2019, Group revenue and EBITDA have grown more than three and a half times and the workforce has more than doubled in size (as of 2024), testament to the excellent scalability of the business model. The Group currently employs around 150 people in five European offices. At the same time, it has been possible to significantly expand the partnership landscape, too. Together with its national subsidiaries, Elovade currently supports more than 11,000 active MSPs and reseller partners across Europe, and has access to some 60 percent of the relevant market in the respective regions.
The next chapter in the VAD’s success story
The latest acquisition of Inuit coupled with a robust network, financial stability and the wide-ranging expertise of its investors are helping Elovade further cement itself as a leading force in the European VAD business. One of the Group’s stated aims is to secure market shares in both existing and new regions through organic growth and targeted acquisitions, while positioning itself demonstrably as a provider of added value.
“With the expansion of the Nordic region, we are consistently pursuing our objective of expanding our VAD Group across Europe. With a product portfolio geared to ITSM and a focus on larger MSPs in the Nordics, Inuit is the perfect addition to the Elovade family,” says CEO Philip Weber.
Thorir Eggertsson, CEO of Inuit, adds: “We’re really happy to be part of the dynamically expanding Elovade Group and have the opportunity to work with new colleagues in Europe, share know-how, and learn from one another. Together with the teams in Germany, Switzerland, Italy and the existing team in Sweden, we want to significantly expand the range of products available to our channel in the Nordics.”
Strengthening the new brand
Until recently, the VAD Group had been operating under the original names of its national companies, i.e. EBERTLANG, ACHAB, and Innosoft. However, the introduction of the international Elovade brand in June this year saw the subsidiaries consolidated under a single roof. Initially, the latest addition to the Elovade Group will continue to operate under its name Inuit with an additional reference to Elovade. In the medium term, the plan is to integrate Inuit into Elovade’s Nordics structure.
Focus on international growth
“The acquisitions will help generate synergies that will allow us to tailor our product portfolio even more specifically to the needs of our partner segments. What’s more, our joint focus on security solutions will ensure clear positioning and strong, sustainable growth for the Group in the future,” says Elovade CFO/COO Marcus Zeidler. “But our focus will remain the same despite – or even because of – this targeted growth. We will continue to focus on providing our partners with personalized support: in future, our partners will benefit even more from our expert advice, strong technical support and extensive event and academy offerings, even across international borders.” Weber adds: “In the Nordic countries, Inuit has established itself primarily as an ITSM expert; with its outstanding range of services and expertise, it will be a valuable asset for Elovade – not only in the Nordics, but in all the other markets too.”
Transaction advisory
HQ Equita and Elovade received advice on the transaction from the law firms Watson Farley & Williams and MAQS Advokatbyrå AB (legal), Singular Group AG (CDD), Deloitte (FDD and TDD) and MSLAW (loan agreement)
About Inuit
Specializing in products for IT operations and IT security, software distributors Inuit offer efficient IT solutions that aim to simplify the everyday lives of its customers. The company focuses on creating concrete customer benefits by increasing productivity and providing secure IT platforms. The portfolio covers areas such as ITSM help desk, ticket management, management of clients and mobile devices, network and server monitoring, cloud services, IT security, IT analytics, Identity Access Management and Active Directory. Among the distributor’s key clients are international software manufacturers ManageEngine and Finnish security specialists WithSecure.
About Elovade
Elovade is one of Europe’s leading value-added software distributors specializing in IT security and cloud services. 150 experts at locations in Germany, Italy, Sweden and Switzerland support thousands of IT service providers and system houses across Europe in the distribution and implementation of software. Partners benefit from a comprehensive range of services, from training courses, workshops and a digital learning base to audits and on-site integrations carried out in collaboration with partners. Elovade also deploys appropriate marketing and sales strategies to support software providers when launching new products in Europe, thus ensuring steady growth in brand awareness in the channel.
www.elovade.com I www.elovade.com/de-ch I www.elovade.it I www.elovade.com/sv
Press contact
riba:businesstalk GmbH
Julia Griebel
Klostergut Besselich
D-56182 Urbar, Koblenz, Germany
Tel.: +49 (0)261 963757-12
Email: jgriebel@riba.eu
Web: www.riba.eu
ELOVADE Deutschland GmbH
Alexander Hassel
Garbenheimer Str. 36
D-35578 Wetzlar, Germany
Tel.: +49 (0)6441 67118-398
Email: alexander.hassel@elovade.com
Web: www.elovade.com