Richmond, Va.-based CE Pro 100 company Livewire has reached an agreement to acquire, Avico, a local integration company founded by a former Livewire employee. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Effective Friday, June 17, all of Avico’s customers were transferred to Livewire, which assumed all day-to-day operations of the business.

In a message to Avico clients, Livewire noted, “We promise to deliver the same great customer service you’re accustomed to, and we’re here to make the transition as seamless as possible!”

Livewire informed Avico clients about its warranty policies, its talented team of technicians and introduced a seamless transition for automatic billing of security monitoring fees. The transferred accounts will continue to be monitored by third-party central station Security Central with Alarm.com as the resource for automation and mobile app control.

Avico was a single-man organization founded in 2017 by Scott McNutt, a former employee of Livewire from 2011 to 2016. McNutt decided to pursue career interests outside of the AV integration industry, so he turned to Livewire, a company he knew and trusted from his previous tenure.

“Avico shared many of the same core values and beliefs we hold dear at Livewire, as well as the goal of simplifying technology for our customers,” says Henry Clifford, founder and CEO at Livewire. “Both companies have focused on providing quality work and quality products across Central Virginia. At Livewire, we pride ourselves on consistently providing excellent customer service.

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“This acquisition was an opportunity to build additional client relationships in our region, and provide a safety net to transitioning Avico clients who had open projects or monthly monitoring services.”

Clifford founded Livewire in January 2002 from his Henrico, Va., home. It has grown to more than 30 employees with revenues of $4.6 million in 2021 operating out of two offices. The company offers a comprehensive slate of technology services including smart building automation, indoor and outdoor lighting control, custom theater solutions, security systems, distributed audio/video, and networking solutions in both residential and commercial markets. 

The acquisition by Livewire follows other recent acquisitions by leading companies in the custom electronics space, including Seattle-based Wipliance acquiring Huppins, Boston-based simpleHome acquiring Creative Systems, Manhattan-based eHome acquiring Cloud9, and Midwestern integrator Denizen’s acquisition of Dallas Signt & Sound in 2021. The activity follows years of dormancy in terms of mergers and acquisitions within the industry.  

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