Company is Canada’s leading third-party wholesaler of alarm monitoring services
Lanvac Surveillance, Canada’s leading third-party wholesaler of alarm monitoring services, foresees more milestone events this year – ones that hold the promise of expanding the Montreal-based company’s imprint from that of a respected wholesaler into a more instantly recognizable brand name.
Members of the Lanvac team were on hand at their corporate booth during the Security Canada East trade show at the Laval Sheraton on April 24.
Gathering of security experts
With Security Canada conventions also taking place in western and central Canada this year, the gatherings are a time for security experts from across the country to focus on building and renewing relationships with hundreds of professionals deeply involved in Canada’s security services sector.
“Essentially there are two main things that are new this year with the Lanvac Group,” Stephanos Georgoudes, one of several members of a family deeply invested with Lanvac, said in an interview with Newsfirst Multimedia.
The Lanvac Group consists of three divisions: Lanvac Surveillance (the original unit), NBG Telecom (providing alarm dealers with the tools to compete against big telecom), and the company’s latest division, FindMyAlarm.com.
FindMyAlarm.com
While Lanvac Surveillance oversees monitoring of alarm systems across Canada, NBG Telecom sells alarm equipment to Lanvac dealers who retail it to consumer-level customers.
In the meantime, FindMyAlarm.com (the most recent addition) is tailored to the needs of end-users (consumers), so they can locate local alarm companies should they ever become disenchanted with their own provider and want to switch to another firm.
“If a random customer is not satisfied with his current alarm company or is looking for an alarm company for the first time, he can go to FindMyAlarm.com, put in his postal code, and three to four alarm companies in his area are listed,” said Georgoudes, adding that “only trusted and customer service-oriented alarm companies are listed on FindMyAlarm.com.”
Growing the Lanvac brand
As a wholesaler of alarm system monitoring services to consumer-level companies, Lanvac has had relatively few opportunities until now to become known among consumers as a brand. Although FindMyAlarm.com was designed to promote alarm companies dealing with retail customers, the web portal holds the potential to build a bridge between retail clients and the Lanvac name.
“We created FindMyAlarm.com so that they can find a company closer to them that can serve them better,” Georgoudes explained. “And, of course, those companies are connected with Lanvac.”
Lanvac Group is currently in the midst of two other significant development projects. With the first, the company is building a second central alarm monitoring station in Montreal. It is located in Montreal North. Lanvac also has monitoring stations in other regions of Canada, including Toronto.
Bosch Security partnership
In the second development, the NBG Telecom unit is now an officially authorized partner of Bosch Security and Safety Systems. “NBG Telecom can now sell any Bosch alarm systems, whether it’s for intrusion, fire or access,” added Georgoudes.
“It took us about three years to prove ourselves, but now that we have, Bosch has made us authorized Bosch partners.”
Lanvac is still working actively with Ukraine-based intrusion alarm products manufacturer Ajax Systems, which had entered the Canadian market last year. “We’re still very good partners with Ajax,” said Georgoudes. “We’re about to offer video monitoring through Ajax’s photo-verification services.”
Lanvac’s roots go back more than 40 years, during which the company developed a reputation for being dedicated to providing quality monitoring services for alarm dealers across the country and their customers.
Deep roots in Montreal
Lanvac was founded by brothers John and Bill Georgoudes. Raised in Montreal’s Park Extension district – which was at one time home for most of the city’s Greeks – they turned their initially small burglar alarm company into a big-time contender.
Lanvac’s first monitoring station was in Montreal’s Parc Extension neighbourhood, in the basement of a building at the corner of Durocher and Jean Talon. Bill got his elementary education at Barclay School on Wiseman Ave., while John attended Strathcona Academy in Outremont.
Bill received his secondary education at the former William Hingston High School, which has since become the area’s most important community centre. John attended another legendary secondary school, Baron Byng High, which was made famous by novelist Mordecai Richler.
