New Hampshire-based MSP Blue Mantis is continuing its growth with new acquisitions of three Vermont-based IT, networking, and telecommunications MSPs that the company says will broaden its services and boost its size by almost 200 customers across the U.S.
In the latest deals, Blue Mantis acquired MSPs TELigence Partners, Brevin Systems and Calkins Networks “to build upon the success we have already had and meet the demand for carrier services in the mid-market sector in New York, Vermont and western New Hampshire,” Josh Dinneen, the CEO of Blue Mantis, told ChannelE2E. Blue Mantis provides managed services as well as cybersecurity and cloud services for its customers.
“This was a unique and great opportunity to deepen our bench of managed and IT services expertise in some key areas and to expand both our customer footprint and our company geographically in Albany, Buffalo, Rochester and Burlington,” said Dinneen. “In these markets, there is a high concentration of mid-market businesses looking for reliable IT partners. However, due to the smaller population compared to other metro areas like New York City, Boston and Philadelphia, it is a market that is significantly underserved.”
TELigence Partners provides telecommunications and IT consulting, network design, solution procurement, billing audit, cost recovery resolution services, and more to its customers, while Brevin Systems provides advanced network and security services through consulting and managed services. Brevin Systems offers expertise in data networking, including small to campus-sized networks, enterprise wireless deployments, and network security services. Calkins Networks is a premier MSP that focuses on IT services from end-user device support, network management and security, cybersecurity, disaster recovery, and cloud computing.
“Over the past three years, Blue Mantis has registered aggressive organic growth and expanded through strategic M and A,” said Dinneen. “This is a continuation of that second aspect of our business expansion. Blue Mantis already had existing service offerings in carrier services and networking, including SD-WAN, network, voice and messaging AI, AI-driven automation, 5G networks, and more.”
How MSPs Will Benefit From the Acquisitions
By acquiring these three companies, Blue Mantis will gain significant abilities to design, deliver, and support cutting-edge managed IT solutions across networking, cloud, and carrier services, said Dinneen. This will benefit MSPs and their agents, he said.
“By expanding our expertise and service offerings, Blue Mantis – along with our distribution and agent partners – can now better serve mid-to-large businesses in the severely underserved upstate New York, Vermont, and western New Hampshire region, unlocking new growth opportunities in these key markets,” said Dinneen.
The acquisitions were made now because the three companies were already closely collaborating, said Dinneen, which made their integration within the Blue Mantis umbrella more efficient.
Growth Through Acquisition Remains Popular Today, Analysts Say
Anurag Agrawal, founder and chief global analyst with Techaisle, told ChannelE2E that Blue Mantis’s acquisitive growth strategy is a trend that is common in the marketplace.
“According to Techaisle's Channel Partner Research, which surveyed over 2,500 partners, a significant 31% of partners are looking to grow through mergers and acquisitions,” said Agrawal. “This is largely because no single partner can meet all of a customer’s needs. The channel’s role – and its most significant opportunity – lies in focusing on buyer needs. This requires the channel partner to plot a path aligned with buyer strategies rather than vendor products.”
Each channel partner has a unique window through which they operate and sell, said Agrawal, while customers are increasingly opening completely different windows. “This discrepancy means that partners either need to adapt their window, collaborate with others, or acquire existing partners to meet these new demands,” said Agrawal. “In this context, Terry Richardson, the chief revenue officer at Blue Mantis, is demonstrating a keen understanding of the market. He recognizes that the path to growth and providing a complete solution to the end customer involves filling gaps by acquiring firms. This not only enhances their service capabilities but also positions them to better address the evolving needs of their customers.”
Shelly Kramer, founder and principal analyst at Kramer&Co., agrees.
“This is going to be something we are seeing more of as MSPs want to capitalize on opportunity and VCs continue to be interested in snapping up companies like Blue Mantis to add to their portfolio,” Kramer told ChannelE2E.
“Growth by acquisition is a strategy that Blue Mantis is clearly employing, fueled by the September 2024 majority investment by private equity firm Recognize,” said Kramer. That investment came in addition to an existing investment from Abry Partners, which began in 2020 and is now a minority investor, added Kramer. “For companies that want to grow and scale quickly, trading financial capital for equity facilitates those moves,” she said. “I expect to see much more of that in the months ahead, especially in the IT channel. For Blue Mantis, this is an opportunity for the MSP to capitalize on the rapid growth of the IT services landscape, providing managed IT services, security, and cloud offerings and expertise.”
The acquisition of the three MSPs recently by Blue Mantis “speaks to the growing need for infrastructure, network security, and carrier service solutions and positions Blue Mantis nicely to serve those needs,” said Kramer. “I will note that network infrastructure is what powers AI and AI-powered automation solutions, so seeing moves like this is not surprising. Acquiring this trio of companies means enhanced offerings from Blue Mantis, including the ability to help clients drive greater efficiencies, reduce costs, and provide the infrastructure modernization and security services customers need most today. As a result of these acquisitions, Blue Mantis is making significant inroads in the Northeast and appears to be adding some additional enterprise customers to the portfolio.”
