Ingram Micro Snags Two Foreign Firms with Combined Sales of $600M

Ingram Micro will bolster its global distribution, device lifecycle and repair services by acquiring two companies with combined annual sales of nearly $600 million.

The Santa Ana, Calif.-based distributor announced Monday a binding offer to acquire Anovo, a Paris-based reverse logistics provider with annual revenues exceeding $300 million, and the acquisition of a majority interest in Armada, Turkey's largest value-added distributor with 2013 sales of more than $280 million.

Ingram intends to acquire the remainder of Armada in accordance with Turkish capital market regulations.

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Ingram CEO Alain Monie said in a statement that the Anovo deal - which is expected to close in early 2015 - should jumpstart the distributor's lifecycle management operations in Europe and Latin America, which are both experiencing high growth thanks to the proliferation of mobile devices, accessories and wearables.

The deal is also expected to strengthen Ingram's relationship with many of the world's largest telecom operators and OEMs, Monie said.

"I am confident that Anovo will bolster Ingram Micro's already robust service offerings with additional geographic reach, as well as complimentary expertise in repair, refurbishment, reverse logistics and returns-avoidance solutions," Francois Lacombe, Anovo CEO, said in a statement.

Anovo will continue to operate as a separate entity even after the acquisition is completed, with Lacombe reporting to Ingram Mobility president Shailendra Gupta. The deal should modestly boost Ingram's non-GAAP earnings per share, the company said.

Financial details of the transaction are not being disclosed, Ingram said.

Meanwhile, the Armada deal should enhance Ingram's access and reach in Turkey's fast-growing technology sector, increasing both the scale and breadth of solutions Ingram can bring to market, according to Ali Baghdadi, Ingram's president of Middle East, Turkey and Africa Technology Solutions.

"The addition of Armada is well-aligned with our strategic initiatives to grow Ingram Micro's value business in attractive markets," Baghdadi said in a statement.

Armada was founded in 1993 and offers a robust enterprise solutions portfolio and channel development expertise in the SMB market. Anovo employs 5,000 across 11 countries, extending the life of more than 20 million devices annually.

The Anovo deal was the second time in recent years Ingram has turned to M&As to bolster its device lifecycle services portfolio.

Ingram acquired Indianapolis-based mobility specialist BrightPoint for $840 million in October 2012. Monie said in October 2013 that the Brightpoint business is performing well and has helped Ingram boost its presence in mobile device life-cycle services.

Guy Baroan, founder and president of Baroan Technologies in Elmwood Park, N.J., thought Ingram was wise to focus on Europe for its mobile device servicing capabilities since the continent has been an earlier adopter of mobile devices than has the United States.

In time, though, he hopes the deal will allow Ingram to strengthen its reverse logistics capabilities in the United States since Baroan doesn't have any other company he can turn to for that service.

"If Ingram was to bring something like that to the states, I think it would be beneficial," Baroan said.