Avisen looks to restart M&A after huge FY11 losses

Buy-and-build player swallows seven-figure impairment charges in topsy-turvy year

Buy-and-build outfit Avisen swallowed an operating loss of three times its sales from continuing operations during an eventful FY11.

For the 12 months ending 31 January, total revenue rose almost 70 per cent on last year to £12.3m. However, just £2.6m came from continuing operations, as Avisen sold off Inca, its biggest business, to Logicalis in March.

Operating loss from continuing operations in FY11 was £7.8m, compared with £2.3m the previous year. The hefty loss was attributed, in part, to a one-off impairment charge of £4.5m relating to the company's acquisition of fellow buy-and-build outfit Xploite in March 2010. Other one-off items, including integration expenses, totalled £1.5m.

The Avisen brand, which trades as a business and technology consultancy, is one of only two group companies still operational, alongside ISV Storage Fusion. Avisen chairman Mark Battles admitted that his firm "needs to add more scale". To this end, the board has "identified several acquisition opportunities which it is actively pursuing", explained Battles.

"The board believes that the disposal of Inca is an excellent result for the group, in light of a backdrop of pressure on margins and the need for significant investment in the business in order to remain aligned with new SaaS technologies," he added.