Signpost strengthens European market position with strategic acquisition of ICONO

Spanish IT company for education strengthens ICT Group for education

27 June, Menorca, 2024 - Signpost, a fast-growing ICT company focused exclusively on the digitalisation of education in Europe, has completed its second acquisition in Spain with the acquisition of ICONO. This strategic move strengthens Signpost' s market position in Spain. Signpost was already present in the Valencia region with Campus PDI , serving 150 public schools and 30 universities with hardware and software. ICONO and Campus PDI are geographically and substantively complementary and will be merged this year, bringing Signpost to a top 3 position in Spain.

Signpost, with a turnover of around 200 million euros, supplies hardware (Academic Hardware), software (Academic Software), educational content from its own publisher Lernova, connectivity (Academic Connect powered by Proximus) and training (Fourcast) to students, schools, colleges, and universities in 12 European countries. Signpost works with global players such as Microsoft, Google, Adobe, HP, Lenovo, and ASUS. Thanks to this 360° approach, Signpost unburdens the schools completely, allowing them to focus on their core business: education.

With over 22 years of experience in the ICT sector for education and 45 employees and offices in Madrid, Andalusia, and the Balearic Islands, ICONO has specialised and professionalised in guiding schools and institutions in their digital transformation process. ICONO is one of the main education partners of Google and Microsoft, Acer, and Lenovo in Spain. The company develops customised implementation projects for any type of educational institution. ICONO has thus become a reference company in the Spanish education sector.

Signpost's software platform, 'Academic Software', with more than 1.5 million users in 12 countries, is known for its efficiency and user-friendliness and is now also available to ICONO customers. Sometimes called the 'the Spotify for student software', the platform distributes more than 1,500 different software titles, cloud, and virtualization solutions.

With the acquisition of ICONO, the number of employees or 'Signposters' grows to 400. CEO Pere Pons and team remain on board and will continue this joint growth story in the coming years.

Pedro Pons, CEO of ICONO: "With the integration of ICONO into Signpost, we reinforce our commitment to the schools, with a broader portfolio of products and solutions tailored to schools. ICONO and Signpost share the same DNA and commitment to schools: improving their operations through responsible use of technology, training and support, in the service of the teacher and student."

Arne Vandendriessche, CEO of Signpost, added: "Our group aims to continuously strengthen itself in the various fields in which we operate, both organically and through acquisitions. The most important thing is that we can provide educational institutions in Europe with an even better response to their digitalisation needs. Proper digitalisation is not just about IT material but also about guiding schools to use this technology in the right way. Technology is a means, not an end in itself, but it can make education cheaper, better, and smarter. With Pere and his team, we have now taken a huge acceleration to grow faster in Spain as well."

For more information, contact:

Arne Vandendriessche - CEO Signpost

Pedro Pons - CEO ICONO