Aricoma Group buys Cloud4com

The Aricoma Group, a member of the KKCG Group owned by entrepreneur Karel Komárek, announced another acquisition in the IT sector. Aricoma's subsidiary AUTOCONT has purchased a 100% stake in Cloud4com, one of the biggest independent providers of cloud infrastructure in the Czech Republic.

Representatives of the two companies signed an agreement yesterday, under which Cloud4com becomes an integral part of the Aricoma holding. The strategic result of this transaction will be a strong Czech provider of IT infrastructure with a comprehensive portfolio of services for small and medium enterprises. The Aricoma holding is the new owner of shares that were formerly part of the long-term portfolio of the Springtide Ventures venture capital fund and in part owned by the founders of Cloud4com. As part of the transaction, Cloud4com founders were appointed to the management of the MidMarket Division of AUTOCONT, another member of the Aricoma Group.

"We know Cloud4com very well because it was the target of an investment we made through the Springtide Ventures fund four years ago, while Cloud4com was going through the startup stage. The fact that our business operations have now come together confirms that we originally made the right choice. More importantly, the deal will help us fulfill our ambition to be the number one provider of cloud services in the Czech Republic," explained Michal Tománek, KKCG's Investment Director responsible for information technologies.

According to Aricoma's CEO Milan Sameš, the acquisition is consistent with the consolidation trend on the Czech market for IT services, "We are building a resourceful holding using the best that's available on the domestic market, and we're looking abroad as well."

Tomáš Knoll, Cloud4com's CEO and one of its founders, confirms that the owners sought a strategic investor who would guarantee the future development of their company, one of the fastest growing cloud infrastructure providers in the Czech Republic. "We received several offers, but in the end we chose Aricoma, mainly because of the broad regional coverage offered by the AUTOCONT network," explained Knoll.

"We are currently doing well with the 'We Are Your IT' project, a business concept as part of which we guarantee or take over the administration and development of the customer's information technologies. Thanks to that, our clients can focus on their forte, the primary objective of their business. The services provided by Cloud4com will be a perfect addition to this model. Complementing our unique nationwide sales channel with Cloud4com’s products will provide us with three main competitive advantages. To begin with, we'll be able to offer what is currently the best local cloud platform for BU MM. Combined with our Microsoft Office 365 and Microsoft AZURE competences, the platform will allow implementing any of the cloud scenarios customers might require. In addition, we'll be the only company on the market capable of offering an end-to-end solution to IT services, ranging from IaaS to complete outsourcing, including selected applications the integral part of which will be local hands-on accessibility anywhere in the Czech Republic. And finally and no less importantly, the acquisition will provide a fast solution to management, competence, and other staff-related issues regarding our Prague-based team," added Martin Stejskal, Director of AUTOCONT's Midmarket Business Unit.