American Defense Systems acquires Direct Protect Security and Surveillance

DALLAS—On Friday, August 16, 2019, American Defense Systems of Dallas acquired Direct Protect Security and Surveillance out of Costa Mesa, CA. Direct Protect has provided smart home solutions to residents and businesses in over 13 states for approximately 10 years.

Matt Leibelt and James Melad, principals of Direct Protect, met in the mortgage industry in the early 2000s. After working in a different industry for a number of years, they reconnected to work in the home security space. Leibelt and Melad started a marketing company, JDM Marketing, with a focus on providing other security companies with a turnkey, full-service marketing platform. With the success of that strategy, they later rebranded to Direct Protect Security and Surveillance, and became a full-service security company.

American Defense Systems was one of their first security companies to purchase their leads. When Direct Protect decided to put a stronger focus on sales, Curtis Kindred, CEO of American Defense and part of SSN 20 under 40 Class of 2018, selflessly offered valuable advice and knowledge in the industry to help guide Direct Protect to success.

“Curtis is one of the first dealers we met entering the industry in 2010,” said Leibelt. “We've always admired his integrity and vision for growth. We are more than excited to be part of the team and help take this company to the next level.”

“Both companies identified a huge benefit that had little downside to the partnership,” said Melad. “Without that level of trust and collaboration throughout the years, I'm not sure the conversation would have ever happened.”

American Defense Systems continues to expand its national footprint and customer base with the acquisition of Direct Protect. “The team at American Defense and I are extremely excited to work with Matt and James,” Kindred said. “We have been informal partners in this industry for a long time now, and it was time to put our combined knowledge and resources together to grow something special.”