Stealth Alarms to target U.S. with dealer program

CALGARY, Alberta - Security company Stealth Alarms was set in mid-January to launch a national U.S. dealer program that company officials expected would catapult the mid-sized Canadian company into the upper echelons of the U.S. market. At press time, Stealth was ready to officially bring on board nearly 100 dealers in the U.S. into its program, a multi-million dollar venture that will bring Stealth’s radio communication and digital backup offering to dealers here. At the heart of the program is a concierge service and backing from some major consumer lenders that will allow financing for equipment direct to the consumer, using Stealth as a vehicle, according to Brad Morrison, president of Stealth Alarms. The program is also linked to discounts from national product and service providers, such as savings on dry cleaning and car rentals. “ What we are trying to say to the client is not only are we working hard for you, but if you are going to pay us somewhere around $30 in monitoring, we don’t want you to create another budget,” Morrison said. “The savings you receive because you are a Stealth client will more than pay for your monthly monitoring bill.” Morrison said Stealth’s expectation for the program was to install between 10,000 to 15,000 units per month, based on the size of the companies interested and already committed to the program. “We limited our dealership numbers and we felt that 100 is what we can handle, based on the infrastructure that we currently have,” he said. The program is based around a flexible business plan where dealers can use many different sales methods, including no-down systems to a custom system that covers all doors and windows in a home, said Phil Dana, Stealth vice president. “We are looking for people in the 50 to 300 systems per month category…and to have them positioned from the Atlantic to the Pacific,” Dana said. Another facet of the program that has generated a lot of interest is Stealth’s plans to offer the program with no recourse to the dealer should the account be canceled. “We rely entirely on our due diligence,” Morrison said. “We have to make sure that when we take on an account we feel very strongly that they are going to pay.” The accounts will be monitored out of Stealth’s central station in Calgary.