Growing a leading life safety services provider – Irene Zou provides further colour on the Apax Funds’ investment in Altus Fire & Life Safety

Altus offers state-of-the-art fire and life safety services and solutions, such as testing and inspection, service and repair, drills and training, monitoring, upgrade, and installation services across product categories including fire alarm, sprinkler, and security systems. Founded in 1993, the company is held in high regard for its impressive growth and leading position in the regulation- and insurance-mandated fire and life safety services market. 

After following the industry for some time, we were impressed by the company’s consistent delivery of robust top-line performance and impressive growth trajectory fuelled by strategic M&A in recent years. Since 2021, the company has completed eight acquisitions, broadening its range of services and expanding its geographic footprint. We recognised that the business sits in an attractive, defensive market and were eager to work with John and the entire team to drive further growth to solidify its market leading position.

Also, the Apax Funds have a proven track record in supporting service companies’ inorganic expansion with examples including SavATree which carried out over 40 acquisitions, Authority Brands which executed over 10 acquisitions and AssuredPartners 450 acquisitions.

Altus is well-positioned to maintain its leading position due to its strong reputation and established relationships with key strategic partners. The fire and safety market has experienced significant growth in recent years, and we expect this expansion to continue, offering further opportunities alongside increased market consolidation. In recent years, the company has achieved rapid growth expanding its offering and geographic reach. As a result, Altus is set to sustain its growth through both organic development and strategic acquisitions.

In partnership with Apax’s Operational Excellence Practice, the Apax Funds will support Altus in driving growth by investing in sales efforts, focused around continuing to drive an acceleration in recurring services, and expanding geographically. Additionally, they will help the business capitalize on the highly fragmented fire and life safety market through M&A.