It is the oldest security company in Canada and Price’s Alarms, which is owned and operated in B.C., has purchased Vancouver-Island-based Benchmark Security.
Robert Bain, Price’s director of marketing, said the merger is good news for Benchmark clients in District 69.
“The biggest benefit to them is . . . now they have an Island company that owns its own monitoring system taking care of them,” stated Bain.
Price’s was started by the Price family and founded as a locksmith in 1895.
Over 30 years ago, the family-owned security business branched out to include alarm systems and today is one of the largest independent alarm companies in Western Canada.
Having grown to more than 140 employees the company provides round-the-clock ULC monitoring protection to more than 30,000 homes and businesses across Vancouver Island, the Lower Mainland and the Okanagan.
Bain said his company is always expanding and they felt it was an appropriate time to bring Benchmark into their fold.
“We are always looking at mergers and acquisitions in B.C. and in most of the markets we serve we are the predominant player so we had the conversation with Benchmark.”
Bain noted that in this day and age with technology changing so quickly, many companies come and go and businesses can change ownership without you even knowing.
He insisted that Price’s Alarms is here to stay.
“We are not selling or down sizing . . . our business is solid,” he emphasized.
Bain said owning and operating their own 24-hour monitoring station is what sets them apart.
He explained that with many other security companies monitoring is done by another company or third party outside of Vancouver Island leaving their customers with substandard service.
He revealed that in one B.C. community, there is monitoring being done by a taxi company for a security company.
“When an alarm comes in to that monitoring station, and someone’s computer shows an alarm is going off, they see it on the screen the same time they are sending a taxi off. That really is a problem,” he warned.
ULC is the stamp of approval for the best in quality monitoring stations and Bain pointed out that their current and new monitoring stations are ULC certified.
“Our world is security. We own our own monitoring station and we take care of you 100 percent of the time. It is the only way to do it.”
The company is currently building a brand new monitoring station in Victoria where it will allow Price’s security experts to monitor their wide range of clients from a state-of-the-art facility.
Bain added the new station built from the ground up with the latest technology, systems and security achieving the industry’s highest standard when it comes to design and reliability will keep their customers safe regardless of unforeseen circumstances.
“We refer to it as the vault.”
Many of the employees of Benchmark Security have decided to stay on with Price’s Alarms and Bain agreed it is a win-win situation for all involved.
“Finding talented people is always the most difficult part of business and we end up with some really great people that come along with the merger.”
