Welltel has announced the acquisition of Kildare-based IT service provider Novi. Welltel said that adding Novi’s 15 employees will bring the total headcount to 115 and customer numbers to c.3,000.

Novi is a managed cybersecurity company that was established in 1999. Customers include CarePlus Pharmacy, Flynn, Irish Funds, O’Brien’s Fine Foods and Expert Electrical.

Based in Millenium Park in Naas, Novi also has offices in Dublin and Cork. Operating company Global Net Solutions Ltd had 17 people on the payroll in the year to October 2018, when the company booked a net profit of €110,000. Trade debtors at year end were €310,000, balance sheet cash was €345,000, total liabilities were €430,000 and net worth was €375,000.

Company filings disclose that Novi founder and managing director George O’Dowd (50), who owned the venture, borrowed €315,000 from the company in 2019 and 2020 to purchase an investment property and optimise the use of the company’s surplus cash.

O’Dowd commented: “We’re excited to leverage the synergies between our two brands to provide mid-sized Irish businesses with a combination of managed IT, security and communications expertise. Our united offering gives us the ability to facilitate flexible working needs and make it easy for customers to manage their ICT.”

In Association with

Most of the deal finance was sourced from Duke Royalty plc in London. Welltel CEO Ross Murray added: “The Welltel and Novi teams share a very similar vision of enabling growth for businesses which made this acquisition a natural fit. Novi’s consistent revenue growth is founded on its ability to acquire and retain high profile customers.

“While Novi will continue to operate as its own entity, our support teams will be connected and collaborate closely to ensure that we can offer integrated solutions which deliver the best outcomes for our combined customer base.”

Photo: George O’Dowd (left) and Ross Murray