UK buyer swipes right for Tauranga tech firm
SwipedOn founder Hadleigh Ford says the sale of the business to British company SmartSpace for $11 million is a positive exit for some shareholders just one year after a $1m capital raising.
‘‘From the $1m we’re returning 10 times that amount. A lot of it will reinvested in technology. We’ll be continuing to manage and expand the business from Tauranga, so it’s good for the region, too,’’ he said.
The company provides software to manage worksite visitors for companies across the business sector including construction sites, offices and hospitality outlets where security, safety, data protection, and a ‘‘professional front desk look’’ has become more important, he said.
Although the company is young, Ford began developing a software app several years ago when he was working on construction of a super yacht in Germany and visitors were asked to sign into a tatty old book.
‘‘The business we’re in is competitive. But we punch above our weight for the capital employed. We’ve been focused on the small to medium enterprise market.’’
SwipedOn boasts about 2300 customers in 39 countries.
Ford said he was approached by the UK company, which had seen SwipedOn’s profile on an internet site.
‘‘The high profile of our directors helped.’’ They include Colin Groves who has experience in seed funding, and Ben Kepes, an investor and technology commentator.
When the company sought new funding of $1m a year ago it was supported by Tauranga-based Enterprise Angels, Quayside Holdings, the New Zealand Venture Investment Fund, and The Warehouse Group founder Stephen Tindall. SwipedOn’s software complements SmartSpace’s existing software and broadens its offerings to clients including meeting room, desk management, wayfinding and car-parking services. The software can link multiple locations, notify employees of visitor arrivals via email and messaging, and custom-print visitor identity badges. It can also be used for staff movements in the office.
SwipedOn earned $1.7m in annual revenue, which Hadleigh said was growing at 100 per cent a year. The company will boost its 19-strong workforce by three in the next few weeks and has plans to take on more.
The total cash consideration payable for SwipedOn is $8.6m, with the balance of the $11m from the issue of $2.4m worth of SmartSpace shares to shareholders and founder Ford, cofounder Ben Scott, head of product Matt Cooney, and head of marketing Paul Hansen.
Hadleigh said some shareholders would receive cash, while the mix of cash and shares to management provided for their ongoing involvement.