Badlands buys 58-year-old NYC security integrator Cosmic Fischer
What's the deal? The Badlands Security Company, backed by Tucker's Farm CorporationDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, has acquired Cosmic FischerDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a commercial security integrator that has served New York City since 1968. Terms were not disclosed.
What each side brings: Cosmic designs, installs, and services doors, locks, electronic access control, video surveillance, intercom systems, and gates, mostly across the five boroughs. Badlands is a holding company that acquires established security and locksmith operators in the Northeast while preserving local brands and management.
What changes? Cosmic will keep its name and Manhattan headquarters, with Stephen Vaknin staying on as chief executive officer. He has spent more than 11 years at the company, the last six leading operations.
Why now? Cosmic is the second company to join the Badlands platform. Tucker's Farm capitalised Badlands in February 2025, concurrently acquiring Webster Lock and Hardware Company, one of the largest family-owned locksmiths in the US, covering roughly 10,000 doors with about 40 trucks.
What's the endgame? Webster added scale in mechanical security; Cosmic adds the electronic side of the same door. "Customers want one partner for both the hardware in the door and the system that controls it," said Badlands chief executive officer Daniel Balzora.
Vaknin framed the sale as a careful choice. "We were selective about who we would trust to move the business into the future," he said, adding that the deal gives technicians better tools and the capacity for larger projects.
The signal: Tucker's Farm, founded in 1994 as a goat dairy farm, now targets $100 million to $200 million in long-term assets each year through lower-middle-market M&A. Badlands says it is actively seeking its next partner — a bet that fragmented local security operators are worth rolling up into one platform.
Read more: business.theantlersamerican.com
Image credit: Diplomatic Security Service
