IT consultancy Seisma buys Perth-based advisory Braestone

Braestone has been picked up by growing IT consulting and services company Seisma – in what is the private equity-backed firm’s third acquisition this year.

The purchase of the Perth-based advisory for an undisclosed sum follows one month on from that of local Salesforce specialist Smartapps, and more broadly that of Seisma itself by superfund-backed private equity group Liverpool Partners in October of last year in a deal worth upwards of $20 million.

Having previously sold to IT services firm PS&C for just over $10 million in 2018, Seisma was at the time of its latest purchase said to be considered a platform investment, with a ‘buy and build’ acquisition strategy aimed at quickly scaling into a ‘sustainable’ Australian IT services company. Seisma has since then also purchased another Melbourne-based IT specialist consultancy, coIB.

“We are very excited to be able to welcome Braestone to the Seisma Group,” said CEO Robert Hogeland. “Braestone is a strategic investment and part of our vision to continue extending our delivery capacity in the Australian market. The team at Braestone have a wonderful reputation for delivery – a track record earned over ten years achieving successful client outcomes.”

Launched in 2010 by directors Craig Brown and Mark Gray, Braestone groups its offering around five primary service lines – advisory, strategy, architecture, delivery and intelligence – with private and public sector clients including Wesfarmers, Rio Tinto, Chevron, Murdoch Uni, and the Western Australian Department of Education. It has around two dozen employees listed on LinkedIn.

“After eleven years in business, Braestone is excited to announce this significant milestone,” Gray said of the sale. “Braestone regards the opportunity to join Seisma, and remain independently Australian owned, as particularly appealing. This acquisition gives us the ability to expand the services we can offer our clients and provide more opportunities for our consultants.”

In a press release following the deal, Liverpool Partners stated that the recent acquisitions – described as a “curated selection of capability lead customer-centric IT solution providers” – showed they were on the way to growing Seisma to become “one of the most significant 100% Australian-owned IT consultancy groups” with a presence across Australia and New Zealand.