Amplix Buys Intervale Agent Business, Continues New England Expansion

Amplix, the technology advisory company founded through the merger of multiple New England-based companies, has made another acquisition through a deal with Intervale Technologies.

Amplix is buying Intervale’s technology advisory practice. Intervale will continue its core business of providing structured cabling and audio-visual services, and Amplix will turn to Intervale as a preferred supplier partner for those services. In the meantime, Amplix is taking on the customer accounts associated with Intervale’s technology advisor (agent) business.

Amplix came into existence through the merger of three decorated technology advisor firms: ROI Communications, Blue Front Technology Group and allConnex. Private equity investor Gemspring Capital is fueling the combined company, helping it acquire Net7 and more recently, Intervale’s agent business.

Amplix CEO Joe DeStefano said Intervale has developed a mission over the last 20 years that aligns “perfectly” with Amplix’s goals.

“They have delivered exceptional, tailored solutions to their customers for more than 20 years and their mission aligns perfectly with our goals. We’re confident that Intervale’s technology advisory services clients will benefit from Amplix’s unique IT platform and capabilities, creating additional value for Intervale’s customers. We are thrilled about the potential of this partnership,” DeStefano said.

New England Presence

Intervale operates out of Reading, Massachusetts. All of the aforementioned companies that comprise Amplix come from that state. DeStefano has told Channel Futures that his team intends to build a strong presence New England, establishing itself as the leading technology advisor in the area. The operators that brought their companies together have known each other for multiple years and have tended to engage with one another on a friendly basis, DeStefano has told Channel Futures. And Intervale was no exception, with the company providing services to allConnex and Blue Front, he said.

“We were familiar with the great service they were providing their customers and they have an excellent reputation in our region,” DeStefano told Channel Futures. “We thought there were great synergies building off of our collective expertise to bring added value to both customer sets.”

Intervale launched in 2002 under the leadership of Mike and Jamie Nicholas. Frank Dearborn joined as co-owner with Mike Nicholas later.

Amplix’s Joe Destefano

Dearborn selling the technology advisory business to Amplix and partnering with the company can lead to growth. Intervale through the acquisition is putting an emphasis on core competencies.

“While we will remain focused on delivering exceptional results for our structured cabling and audio-visual clients, our technology advisory services clients will benefit from Amplix’s comprehensive platform and first-class client success team,” Dearborn said.

DeStefano said Intervale’s technology advisory customers can get more value through Amplix’s platform and additional technologies. Amplix possesses back-office support, support staff and strong influence with the vendor community.

“… It was more about finding the right partner than just getting to a transaction. Amplix offers a path to accelerate value for customers and expand the areas of infrastructure supported beyond telephony and network while also increasing vendor leverage and accountability. This allows Intervale to further invest in its core business and broaden its role a leader in its market,” he said.

Intervale will also provide its cabling and AV services in Amplix’s own environment as Amplix expands its office.

Intervale’s Frank Dearborn

In the technology advisor model, a partner helps a customer identify the right as-a-service technologies to procure, and it earns revenue through residual commissions from the suppliers it refers. The technology advisor/agent space has seen rapid consolidation over the last two-and-a-half years. The industry’s lucrative recurring revenue model and its close alignment with cloud services has helped attract the attention of private equity investors. In some cases, a private equity-backed entrant into the space has courted other agents to join it. In other cases, like that of Amplix, existing agencies have joined forces to then seek out a capital partner.