Savaria Enters The Australian Market-Purchases Mater Lifts 07:30 EST Thursday, December 14, 2017
LAVAL, Quebec, Dec. 14, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Savaria Corporation (TSX:SIS) (“Savaria”), one of North America’s leaders in the accessibility industry, is pleased to announce that it has acquired, through Savaria (Australia) Pty Ltd, its wholly owned subsidiary, all of the assets of Master Lifts Australia Pty Ltd (“Master Lifts”), a leading elevator dealer based in Brisbane, Australia, for a purchase price of AUD $3 million (CDN $3.1 million) (the “Purchase Price”). In addition to the Purchase Price, Master Lifts has the potential to earn a further AUD $1 million (CDN $1 million) over a 2-year period upon the achievement of certain annual performance metrics.
The acquisition of Master Lifts provides Savaria with a national sales platform to gain access to the Australian market. Savaria has secured employment commitments from the key employees of Master Lifts and will continue operating in Australia under the “Master Lifts” trade name. The acquired business is expected to generate revenue of approximately AUD $8 million (CDN $8.2 million) in 2018 and AUD $10 million (CDN $10.2 million) in 2019, with an expected EBITDA margin between 15% and 17%.
“Australia represents an attractive market for Savaria with its favourable demographics, strong economic growth and proximity to our plant in China, which delivers a great context to market our new Vuelift luxury elevator along with our complete portfolio of accessibility products. We believe that this initiative represents a business model that can be successfully duplicated in other countries in the future,” said Marcel Bourassa, Chief Executive Officer and President of Savaria.
Master Lifts has been established since 1996 and is based in Brisbane, Australia with operations in all of the states of Australia. Operations include the manufacture of lifts and the sales, installation and servicing of lifts in the residential, commercial and accessibility markets, with over 12,000 lifts installed across Australia. Master Lifts has enjoyed a mutually beneficial seven-year trading relationship with Savaria.