Lumine Group | Advantage 360 Acquisition Case Study

Why Sell?

The founder was nearing retirement and looking for an acquirer with expertise in the telecom space to continue developing the business.

Why Lumine?

Lumine businesses run autonomously so Advantage 360 can maintain the corporate identity that employees and customers already know.
The financial resources and best practices offered by Lumine gave Advantage 360 the validation and support they needed to expand into new geographies.
Lumine offered access to an ecosystem of 450+ potential partners and customers.

Background

Founded in 1984, Advantage 360 offers a converged platform “telco in a box” solution for Tier 3 & 4 emerging markets service providers. The platform enables full lifecycle customer management and includes point of sales, accounting, mediation, fulfillment, and assurance functions.

After operating the business for over 30 years, Advantage 360 Founder and CEO, Richard J. Card, started to plan for retirement. Card felt that the right acquirer of Advantage 360 would continue to grow the business and nurture its employees while taking care of its loyal customer base. Card also wanted an acquirer with expertise in the telecom space that could implement best practices to grow the business and improve the customer experience.

Card first met with Lumine Group in 2013. Over the next six years, Card remained in touch with Lumine Group’s leadership, becoming familiar with the team’s acquisition philosophy. Card saw the portfolio grow and diversify over time, and when ready to seriously start thinking about retirement, Lumine was a natural acquirer for the business based on the relationship developed and fit with the growing group of companies.

Why Lumine?

Card first met with Lumine Group in 2013. Over the next six years, Card remained in touch with Lumine’s leadership, becoming familiar with the team’s acquisition philosophy. Card saw the portfolio grow and diversify over time, and when ready to seriously start thinking about retirement, Lumine was a natural acquirer for the business based on the relationship developed and fit with the growing group of companies.

“We liked their practice of ‘buy-and-hold-forever,’ as well as their dedication to letting acquired companies run as autonomously as possible. Joining Lumine Group would allow us to maintain our corporate identity and enhance the brand we had worked so hard to build,” said Card.

3 Reasons Advantage 360 Chose Lumine

Autonomy & Keeping the Brand Intact

Advantage 360 has long-term customer relationships all around the world. Post-acquisition, it was imperative that the customers would continue to feel well served by their trusted technology partner. Keeping the company’s long-standing brand intact would help them maintain and strengthen their customer relationships. Lumine Group encourages our companies to run autonomously, which means day to day business decisions remains in Advantage 360’s control.

Financial Strength & Stability

Lumine was able to provide the financial backing necessary to grow Advantage 360 both organically and through add-on acquisitions. Joining Lumine would also allow Advantage 360 to expand its customer base, as was demonstrated with a new customer win two weeks after the deal with Lumine was finalized!

Ability to Grow & Expand into New Markets

The Advantage 360 platform includes a range of functions, from customer relationship management, to point of sale, and many more mission-critical features for their operator customers. Joining Lumine Group has offered the company access to a new global ecosystem of domain experts and potential customers.

Advantage 360 Gains a New Customer

Two weeks post-acquisition, Advantage 360 won a new customer, Tonga Communications Corporation (TCC). Prior to the acquisition, Advantage 360 was in competition for TCC’s business. TCC was looking for a vendor that could assure business sustainability and a future-proof product. With Lumine Group’s [note, at the time known as the Volaris Group Communications & Media Portfolio] acquisition of Advantage 360, the CEO of Tonga Communications Corporation said they “knew their significant investment was safe.”

“[We were] looking for assurance of business sustainability and a future-proof product. With the acquisition of Advantage 360 by Volaris Group [Lumine Group], we knew this significant investment was safe.- Timote Katotanga, CEO, Tonga Communications Corporation.

What’s Next for Advantage 360?

After 35 years in operation, Card found a safe and permanent home for his company that would ensure its legacy remained intact after his retirement. Integration with Lumine is now well underway, and the company is focusing on various optimizations including a website refresh. The company’s leaders look forward to developing and implementing new tools and technologies to best serve their customers.

“I am extremely satisfied in my retirement,” said Card. Advantage 360 is in the best possible hands.”

Advantage 360 builds on its 35-year history by joining Lumine Group