Leeds-based digital marketing agency Ascensor has announced their third M&A deal in a year with the acquisition of Blue Mantis assets. The deal, for an undisclosed sum, secures Blue Mantis’ clients, and includes the recruitment of six Blue Mantis employees.
Commenting on the acquisition, Ascensor MD Andrew Firth says:
“This is a strategic opportunity to accelerate the growth of Ascensor, safeguard jobs and provide clients with continuity of service.”
A perfect fit
“The purchase is a perfect fit for Ascensor” says Andrew. “Blue Mantis have been established for 11 years, with a leading position as a developer of bespoke web software for automotive, retail and professional services clients. This deal complements our existing digital transformation activities for businesses in these sectors, and adds a raft of like-minded talent to our team.”
As part of the deal, Ascensor has recruited the three directors of Blue Mantis. Martyn Lee becomes Head of Client Services, David Eggington joins as a Senior UX designer, and Keith Hill takes up a senior role in the application development team. The recruitment count also includes Chris Nightingale (Senior Account Manager), Megan Lancaster (Service Delivery Manager) and Egle Kreivyte (Back-end Developer).
Andrew Firth adds: “Our purchase brings Blue Mantis clients including JCT600 Vehicle Leasing Solutions and Colin Appleyard from the automotive sector; financial services marketing firm, The Dubs, and consulting firm BWL Consulting. The recruitment ensures that all clients will benefit from the continuity of service and support, but now with the support of a larger team and our processes.”
Third acquisition in a year
Andrew Firth comments: “I’m thrilled to announce our third acquisition in a year, which follows our 2020 asset and client purchase from Bradford-based web design and app development business Webposse, together with its associated web hosting firm ClaretMedia LLP. This latest acquisition demonstrates our continued appetite for growth and acquiring businesses which provide a strong strategic fit with our plans, and helps us to continue to grow our highly talented team.”
Commenting on the deal, Martyn Lee says: ‘This is a very exciting time for my colleagues and I. Ascensor are well established and we’ve admired their work from afar. Becoming part of their journey and bringing our expertise and long-established clients with us creates the perfect win-win situation”.
Established in 2007, Ascensor has grown rapidly in recent years, achieving turnover growth of more than 50% in 2020 and 2019. Their target for 2021 is £3.0M. The acquisition of Blue Mantis brings the total headcount at Ascensor to 36 employees.
Ascensor recently moved to state-of-the-art offices in Leeds, including dedicated events space for educational seminars, to business and community partners. They recently won Best Large Digital Agency of the Year in the Northern Digital Awards and achieved ISO27001 information security accreditation.