Company doubles its account base

PENNINGTON, N.J.--Full-service security providers Matrix Security Systems and North Carolina-based SafeGuard Security announced their consolidation in late March--a move that increases its footprint along the eastern corridor of the United States. Under the terms of the transaction, the owners of Matrix LLC traded their LLC membership interests for stock in Lotus Security Services Inc. The joint company will conduct business under the Matrix name, although the SafeGuard name will continue to be used in North and South Carolina. "In all the acquisitions we have completed, SafeGuard was the only one we kept the name of because they have such a great reputation," said Todd Herman, president of the company. Herman said this acquisition, which added approximately 15,000 mostly residential accounts to Matrix's portfolio and doubled its account base, is its largest to date. Financial details of the transaction were not released. John Colehower, executive vice president of the new company and a co-owner of Matrix Security, said that the transaction stemmed from Matrix using SafeGuard as a customer service vehicle for its account base in the Carolinas. "The best thing to do was put the two companies together," Colehower said. In terms of size, the companies were very equal in regards to their geographic reach along the Mid-Atlantic region from New York to South Carolina. 'We pretty much overlapped in the Carolinas," Colehower said. "In terms of market penetration, SafeGuard had a well-defined area and is well known in the Carolinas for their service." Now, the newly joined company accounts for 30,000 accounts, seven offices and more than 100 employees. The company is also in the process of opening a new office in Raleigh, N.C., which according to Colehower is a growing area. Herman said the company will continue to look for additional acquisitions in 2005, after staying quiet on that front through most of 2004 due to the company's refinancing efforts after their lender SLP Capital moved out of the market. "We are currently working on additional acquisitions," he said. "And we are focusing on a program to increase our organic growth now, too. Over the next four year or so, we like to have $2 million in recurring revenue."