Apple reseller Solutions Inc sells ISP unit to Gradwell

Top-level Mac partner offloads £435,000-worth of annual sales to Bath-based comms outfit

Apple Premium Reseller (APR) Solutions Inc has flogged its ISP business to Gradwell, in a deal that should boost the comms provider's top line by about £435,000 annually.

The acquisition was agreed at the start of this month and will allow SME-focused Gradwell to extend its reach into the consumer and education markets. The Solutions Inc ISP business specialises in providing local authorities with internet access for pupil referral units, which help provide education to students unable to attend school.

It also has a consumer broadband and hosted email business, which takes Gradwell into the consumer market for the first time. Additionally, it will add BT to the Bath-based comms firm's supplier roster.

Solutions Inc, which operates six APR stores, reportedly sells £435,000 per annum through its ISP operations. In its 2010 fiscal year, the Hove-headquartered firm turned over a little more than £11.5m.

Gradwell, which posted sales of just over £4m in FY10, has "ongoing plans" to make further acquisitions, according to managing director Peter Gradwell.

"While our focus will remain the small to medium-sized businesses in the UK, I'm really pleased that both our panel of suppliers and market reach is expanding," he added.

"We've been looking at the education market for some time and believe our products offer public sector bodies the right combination of flexibility, reliability and cost savings. This acquisition takes Gradwell right to the door of local authorities. The possibilities are very exciting."