Westcoast grows European business with ADS France acquisition

Company strengthens offering with capture of French electronic office supplies distributor 

Westcoast Group has completed the acquisition of ADS (Adveo Digital Systems) France from Adveo Group International for an undisclosed fee.

ADS France is a distributor of EOS (Electronic Office Supplies) such as security systems and fingerprint readers in mainland Europe, with revenues in excess of €200 million.

The new business, now trading as Westcoast France, will continue to operate from its existing 6,500 square metre facility in Lyon, with with all 70 staff retained.

It will be led by Michael Alonso, who was managing director of ADS France.

The hardware distributor said that whilst its french business will work towards strengthening its position as a leading EOS product distributor in Europe, it plans to introduce new product categories to its Lyon hub and create new opportunities for its reseller base.

Westcoast EOS commercial director Neil Baker said: “We’ve been developing our mainland European EOS business over the last 18 months by shipping from our distribution centre in the UK.

“The acquisition of ADS France provides us with an excellent base as we continue to grow our European business. Lyon is particularly well located for distributing efficiently – not only into France but to all of mainland Europe.”

The acquisition follows a joint venture between Westcoast and Spanish distributor Adveo to create a consumer electronics division that could be worth an estimated top line of €300 million (£233 million).