Forterro buys 123 Insight Ltd

Forterro, a European provider of ERP software solutions to more than 7,000 midmarket manufacturing and production companies, announced the acquisition on 8 July 2021 of UK-based 123 Insight Ltd, a provider of MRP/ERP SaaS solutions for manufacturing companies.

The acquisition of 123 Insight - Forterro’s ninth acquisition in Europe since 2011 and its first in the UK - marks an important strategic milestone for Forterro, giving the group its initial footprint in one of Europe’s top industrial production markets.

Founded in 2000 as a response to the ‘fundamental flaws inherent in the traditional ERP/MRP selection and implementation process’, 123 Insight delivers an out-of-the-box SaaS ERP solution to manufacturing companies of all sizes and types. The system is known for its rich production features, as well as powerful connectivity and pre-built integrations with a variety of accounting solutions. The system also delivers mobile apps for Apple and Android, and a variety of add-on modules including CRM and analytics. The company has received numerous industry accolades for speed of implementation and immediate ROI.

With its portfolio of specialised ERP software solutions and global infrastructure of IP and services, Forterro is a partner to Europe’s midmarket manufacturing leaders. Headquartered in London, and backed by the investment of Battery Ventures, Forterro operates product companies that are headquartered in Germany, France, Sweden, Switzerland, Poland and the UK, as well as regional office locations and research and development centres around the world.

“We are thrilled to bring 123 Insight’s modern product and go-to-market approach into the Forterro group,” said Dean Forbes, CEO of Forterro. “Its keen understanding of the challenges which small and midsize manufacturing companies face when selecting and implementing ERP systems, and its forward-thinking ideas around how to minimise the complexities that are often associated with deploying, maintaining and upgrading an ERP system have made it the successful business that it is today.”

Guy Amoroso and Craig Grant, co-founders of 123 Insight, will continue to support the business in the short term, with the backing of their existing management team.

“123 Insight experienced one of its strongest years to date last year, despite the impact of the pandemic - further evidencing the strength of our business and technology, as well as the loyalty of our customer base. Having built this business over many years, it feels appropriate to hand over the company in such a strong position to a group that can take it to the next level,” said Amoroso.

“Our subscription model has always allowed us to reinvest heavily in software development, delivering a product suitable for all manufacturing types hosted either on-premise or in the cloud,” said Grant. “We were looking for a partner who would allow us to continue doing great things for our customers, while providing us with the expertise, infrastructure and capital we needed to take our new version to market.”

“With this acquisition, Forterro gains a modern, event-driven local or cloud-based ERP/MRP solution,” said Forbes. “The potential here is extremely exciting, and our investment is a validation of the product strategy that the 123 Insight team has chosen, as well as the great work that it has done executing on it. I’m eager to begin collaborating with the team to develop new growth strategies and determine how those can be amplified by the Forterro ecosystem.”