BDE and Apex merge to form one of biggest Sage resellers

Mid-market Sage accounting and ERP system reseller BDE Group has acquired rival Apex Business Systems. The deal makes BDE one of the largest Sage resellers in the UK. The group now has five sites across the UK (London, Worcester, Manchester, Leeds and Bristol), 90 employees, about 1,000 customers and turnover running at £10 million. Says John Linney, BDE Group managing director: “The key objective of this acquisition is to create the leading provider of integrated business systems to SME and mid market businesses. As the market continues to get more demanding and complex, only those with a clear and unambiguous focus will prosper.” Linney says BDE will now be offering more from the Sage range, including Sage Line 100, MMS, Line 500 and CRM (customer relationship management), as well as service and software and hardware support. He also claims greater depth of expertise and improved regional and national coverage. Sage UK CEO Paul Stobart says: “This is a combination of two leading Sage business partners – BDE won the ‘Sage Line 500 Business Partner of the Year Award 2005’ and Apex won the ‘Sage MMS Business Partner of the Year Award 2005’ at the Sage Business Partners of the Year Awards ceremony in November. This new venture … will no doubt enrich the experience of Sage customers at both organisations.” Says Apex managing director Tony Parsonage: “Both BDE and Apex have a significant, loyal customer and recurring revenue base. This merger will deliver true economies of scale and breadth of offering that will benefit the customer at every level.”