Anticimex has acquired Enviropest to become a market leader in pest control in Australia. The acquisition enhances Anticimex’s foothold in the termite control market and further accelerates the international expansion of the Anticimex Group.
Anticimex has acquired 100 percent of Enviropest, the third largest player in the Australian pest control market and a market leader in preventive termite control. Enviropest provides residential pest control services with a strong focus on termites and timber pests, complementing Anticimex’s comprehensive range of services within pest control. The acquisition will enable Anticimex to become a frontrunner in the Australian pest control market and expand its geographical footprint across the continent, and facilitate significant synergy potential through cross-selling in the residential sector.
The international expansion by Anticimex in the pest control market began in the early 2000´s and has accelerated in the past two years. The combination of continuous organic growth and a number of acquisitions has enabled Anticimex to take a leading position in most of its current markets, with operations in 14 countries. Between 2012 and 2014, revenues have almost doubled from SEK 2 billion to approximately SEK 3.5 billion.
“Anticimex has very quickly evolved into an international group with rapid and profitable growth. The newly completed acquisition in Australia will enhance this growth further and marks a natural step towards our vision to build a world-leading pest control company. Our objective is to make the pest control industry more efficient and create solutions for our customers that will enable them to deal with emerging lifestyles and demands of society. Together, we will continue to benefit from our shared and leading expertise, quality, methods and values, and do our utmost to be the most sought after business partner for our customers in all our markets,” says Olof Sand, CEO and President of Anticimex.
Termite infestation is both extremely destructive and costly for property owners and an estimated 650,000 Australian homes have been infested by termites over the past 5 years, which has caused damage for amounts exceeding AUD 4 billion.
The Australian pest control market has strong growth and currently amounts to approximately SEK 6.5 billion, divided evenly between corporate customers and private consumers. The termite segment represents one third of the total market. Growth has mainly been driven by an increase in pests, new build and stricter regulations for pest control. Termite control services are profitable because they require specialist skills and because preventive pest control requires repeated and continual on-site visits and inspections.