Let’s be honest. There’s nothing shocking about the rate in which DEX Imaging acquires dealers. If we had to spitball a figure, Dan Doyle Jr. and his transactions unit typically acquire six dealers of various sizes each year. While the rest of the M&A circuit seems to have slowed to a consistent pace over the past three years, players such as DEX and UBEO Business Services remain fairly robust in their activities.
Over the course of a given year, you may see one or two names of dealers in the $10 million and above range get swallowed up by the consolidators. The rest consist of smaller companies combining their operations to add girth and compete with more fortified dealer and OEM direct operations competitors. Or it’s an owner with a lifestyle business, five or fewer employees, opting to retire. And you can always count on a few mid-market transactions. But the past 12 months have witnessed an unusual amount of major dealers joining other organizations.
The 2025 Elite Dealers list lost seven of its familiar faces during that time. They consist of Fisher’s Technology (acquired by Loffler Companies), Advanced Business Equipment (UBEO), KOMAX Business Systems (Ford Office Technologies), Martin Group (James Imaging Systems), On Demand Inc. (Pacific Office Automation), Southwest Office Systems (DEX) and, most recently, Image 2000 (DEX). Combined, the acquired companies posted approximately $130 million in annual revenue.
Image 2000 was something of a jaw-dropping deal in its significance, providing DEX with an anchor facility as it kicks down the territorial doors into California and Nevada. Joe Blatchford, Image’s CEO and a familiar face on the industry circuit, had logged 34 years slinging MFPs and was ready to move on to the next chapter in his life. It wasn’t a decision he made lightly; he didn’t want to take a check from Doyle and simply walk away.
Image 2000 was Blatchford’s baby. For many execs, their company is the most important thing in life outside of their families. The owners of the other six companies would probably say the same. Blatchford’s priority was to ensure his team members, those who stuck with him through the ups and downs of business, were taken care of properly.
“It was important to me that this transition gave them continuity and an opportunity to keep building on what we’ve created together,” said Blatchford, who will spend the next two years helping in the transition.
Selecting Image 2000’s next custodian was important, and in DEX he saw a company with the resources, reach and opportunities that will enable the dealership to grow. Customers will require a high level of continuity to ensure that the hallmarks of the unparalleled customer and technical service they’ve enjoyed from Image 2000 won’t be washed into the Pacific Ocean.
Blatchford has every faith in Doyle and his team to deliver. “They value the operation we’ve built and the people behind it, and I’m excited about where we’re headed,” he said. “At the end of the day, great leadership makes all the difference.”
The most epic M&A campaign in years still has three months left. Will more large dealers change ownership? It should be an interesting Q4.
