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HP Inc. to Acquire Largest European Office-Equipment, MPS Dealer

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HP Inc. today announced it’s acquiring Apogee Corporation, a U.K.-based office-equipment dealer that’s said to be Europe’s largest independent provider of print, outsourced services, and document and process technology. The transaction values Apogee at £380M (approximately U.S. $498,788,000.00).

HP says the acquisition will further its plan to disrupt the $55 billion A3 copier/MFP market and builds on its printing strategy to: enhance its A3 and A4 product portfolio; build differentiated solutions and tools to expand its Managed Print Services (MPS); and invest in its direct and indirect go-to-market (GTM) capabilities. This includes the selective acquisition of office-equipment dealers that provide access to increased profit pools from higher-margin services.

Apogee sells office-equipment sourced from Canon, Hewlett-Packard, Samsung Ricoh, Xerox, Kyocera, and Konica Minolta.

Enrique Lores, president of HP Imaging and Print, commented: “The Apogee acquisition extends HP’s print leadership by boldly leveraging the industry shift to contractual sales as we aggressively pursue the A3 office market. We’re augmenting our go-to-market and enhancing our ability to deliver the services necessary to win in the profitable contractual market. This deal complements our broader channel strategy and HP remains committed to building our business through our best-in-class partner program.”

HP has been investing in the A3 copier/MFP business with strategic initiatives including the acquisition of Samsung’s printer business and the launch of a portfolio of A3 and A4 copier/MFPs. It says today’s acquisition expands its services portfolio in contractual office printing and MPS categories, where solutions are increasingly important for small and mid-size businesses (SMBs).

The firm says Apogee is a profitable and progressive OED with a proven track record of growth. The company is said to bring strong capabilities in contractual printing services and solutions, an experienced leadership team, and access to SMB and mid-market customers.

HP expects to close the deal by the end of 2018, pending regulatory review and other customary closing conditions.

Following the closing, Apogee will operate as an independent subsidiary of HP Inc., with a governing board composed of HP Inc. and Apogee management. Apogee will have the same commercial relationship with HP as any other premium partner with access to the same tools and partner programs.

Last year, Apogee reported U.K. revenue of £208M and EBITDA of £30M. Once HP closes the deal by the end of this year, it expects to include Apogee’s financial results within its printer group.

For more on this story, see This Week in Imaging: A Closer Look at HP’s Proposed Acquisition of Apogee.

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