Call_Solutions Inc.'s acquisition of FalaDM Group, a print and fulfillment company, has been canceled due to economic conditions, Call_Solutions founder George Dalton said Friday.
If the merger had been completed as was announced in February, Call_Solutions would have more than doubled its annual revenue from around $70 million to $150 million. Call_Solutions, Waukesha, WI, is a growing teleservices agency that is transforming into a full-service direct marketing firm.
Current business conditions make it “impossible or difficult” to complete the transaction at this time, Dalton said.
Dalton said he held FalaDM in high regard and added that if he didn't like the company, he wouldn't have begun acquisition proceedings. Fala will remain a Call_Solutions business partner, and Call_Solutions “will keep leading business to them as we're knocking on doors,” Dalton said.
He also didn't rule out that Call_Solutions would be interested in acquiring FalaDM down the road. Dalton noted that during his time at Fiserv, the $2.5 billion financial information technology firm he co-founded, some acquisitions took years, one as long as a decade.
“Either I like the culture of a company or I don't,” Dalton said. “If I don't like it, I don't touch it. This company (FalaDM) had everything. It just made sense to wait.”
The Jurick family, which owns FalaDM, has decided to maintain the company as a family-owned corporation, said Wendy Doerzbacher, marketing director for FalaDM. The decision to call off the acquisition was made by mutual agreement.
“We're extremely confident of future growth and business opportunities forthcoming,” Doerzbacher said.
Under the acquisition, FalaDM president/CEO Jeffrey Jurick was to take over Call_Solutions' print division, which includes the Lindon, UT-based direct mail firm OneSource. Call_Solutions' plan was to divide itself into three groups, one for print, one for teleservices and another for marketing strategy under The Patrick Marketing Group, which Call_Solutions acquired in September 2002.
Asked if Call_Solutions' expansion plans were on hold, Dalton said: “We'll continue to look for other companies to join us in the future.”
