Micro Com Systems Ownership Transitions to Consentia After 46 Years Under Founder Craig Hollingum

After 46 years with Micro Com Systems, owner Craig Hollingum has successfully navigated the complex process of business succession, transferring ownership to Edmonton-based Consentia Inc. effective December 1, 2025. The transition represents a carefully planned exit strategy for Hollingum, who joined the Vancouver document scanning bureau in 1979 as a sales representative and gradually progressed to become one of three owners in 1992 before becoming sole owner in 2010.

Hollingum faced the common challenge confronting many small business owners approaching retirement age. Research from Statistics Canada indicates the average retirement age is 65.3 years, but for business owners, simply walking away isn't feasible. Hollingum evaluated four potential exit strategies: offering the business to successors, winding down operations gradually, finding a buyer, or what he humorously described as "dying of a massive coronary at his desk." With no family successors interested and the winding down option impractical given employee retention concerns, finding a qualified buyer emerged as the optimal solution.

The search for an appropriate successor began in early 2023 with conversations between Hollingum and several parties in similar business niches. While initial discussions didn't yield results, one party re-engaged earlier this year expressing serious interest in expanding into the British Columbia market. After ongoing negotiations, both parties reached a mutually beneficial agreement that will see Consentia Inc. assume ownership of the Vancouver document scanning business.

Consentia operates a similar service bureau in Edmonton and brings a proven track record of maintaining customer satisfaction through high-quality imaging services. The alignment between both companies extends beyond their service offerings to their shared status as Canadian-owned and operated businesses, providing continuity for Micro Com Systems' client base. Hollingum expressed confidence in the transition, stating he feels "very comfortable handing over the keys to Consentia" before moving to the next stage of life.

Micro Com Systems has been providing document management solutions since 1975, offering services including document imaging and management, archival and book scanning, medical imaging, OCR processing, large format scanning, and enterprise report management. The company's extensive service portfolio and long-standing market presence made finding the right successor particularly important for maintaining business continuity and preserving jobs. Additional information about the company's services remains available at https://www.microcomsys.com/.

The ownership transition highlights broader implications for small business succession planning in Canada, where many family-owned enterprises face similar challenges as founders approach retirement. Successful transitions like this one demonstrate the importance of early planning and finding compatible business partners who can maintain company culture and service quality. For the document management industry specifically, this acquisition signals ongoing market consolidation while ensuring continued service availability for Vancouver-area businesses that rely on Micro Com Systems' specialized scanning and imaging capabilities.