New central to bring “integrity” to monitoring

MINNEAPOLIS - A new wholesale monitoring company slated to open its doors in April will target independent dealers on a national basis with a promise to bring personal service to every monitored account. Integrity Monitoring Services, founded by Mickey Fuller, also the company’s chief executive officer, has letters of intent from several “well-established dealers” to get operations up and running, Fuller said. While initial plans called for a different company name, Gladiator Monitoring, Fuller said the revised name signified the direction of her new company. “The name change was specific,” she said. “We felt that’s really why we were getting into business and what will set us apart from the competition.” The company is the latest in a string of new central stations looking to garner a piece of the wholesale monitoring market, considered ripe by many as independent dealers grow dissatisfied with a shrinking service provider base. (see related story on page 1) With that anticipated demand, goals for Integrity include reaching 25,000 accounts by the end of the first year and a longer range, five-year goal of signing on about 100,000 accounts, Fuller said. At press time, Integrity was working on garnering about $800,000 in start-up capital from investors and banks, both inside and outside the industry, Fuller said. The company’s staff of 10 was also working to outfit a 4,000 square-foot space in its new space. Fuller said the company was also taking advantage of a good employee base in the city, regarded as having a good work ethic and a Midwestern voice, which is important to dealers there, she said. “We don’t plan to have an auto attendant, but will have a live operator answering the phone,” Fuller said. “I don’t think that works for the security business.” Through Integrity, dealers will be offered traditional burglar and fire alarm monitoring along with video services and onsite and remote training for dealers on the company’s software, Fuller said. The company is also looking into Internet monitoring.