Harvey Jones, a local business intelligence (BI) solutions provider, will keep its brand this year and will phase it out next year.
This comes after it became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Avisen, a UK-based business performance management group.
Keith Jones, MD of Harvey Jones, says the company had to wait for approval from the London Stock Exchange before announcing the merger, which was officially signed on 1 November.
“We decided to keep it [the merger] secret, because it's something that can result in a lockdown of the share price,” says Jones.
The merged company, under the name of Avisen, was officially listed on AIM, the London Stock Exchange's international market for smaller growing companies, on 6 January.
Avisen, which purchased Harvey Jones for an undisclosed amount, has since seen its share price more than double from 5p on 1 November, to 11p yesterday.
Jones says Harvey Jones' operations and staff have been completely absorbed by Avisen. “We are growing the business aggressively and this gives Avisen access to a best in class global skills set. We can do the work here [in Johannesburg] for the European market at a lower cost.”
Harvey Jones operates in Rivonia and employs around 30 people. Its operations will continue in Johannesburg, but under the Avisen brand.
Avisen did not have a BI arm prior to purchasing Harvey Jones and was looking for a subsidiary to provide this service at cost-effective rates.
Business growth
Jones says the merger gives the merged company global reach and operational stability. Avisen has offices in London, Amsterdam and now operates in Johannesburg.
According to Marcus Hanke, CEO of Avisen, the merger is synergistic and will use Harvey Jones' software and technology expertise in Avisen's strategic, operational, tactical and planning capability.
Jones adds: “The merger takes advantage of a gap in the market for a company that can offer clients high-end business consulting, backed by the right technology. The right software tools enable execution and allow for strategy to be embedded throughout an organisation.”
Harvey Jones has deployed solutions at Absa, Metropolitan, Saambou, Edcon, SARS, SABC, De Beers and First National Bank. Avisen's client base includes TNT, Heineken, BAE Systems, Millward Brown, Grass Roots Group and Added Value.
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