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Hillman Solutions Corp. announced that it has acquired Koch Industries Inc., a provider and merchandiser of rope and twine, chain and wire rope and related hardware products. This acquisition marks the entrance into rope and chain, a new product category for Hillman.
Hillman recently entered the adjacent category of rope and chain accessories.
“This acquisition allows us to leverage our moat in order to capitalize on growth opportunities in this new product category,” says Doug Cahill, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Hillman. “Koch has healthy, long-term relationships with its top 10 customers, having done business with them for an average of over 20 years. We look to continue to take care of our customers with our 1,100-member field sales and service team, our direct-to-store shipping approach and our portfolio of owned-brands that set us apart from the competition. We are proud to welcome the Koch Industries team to the Hillman family.”
Founders, co-owners and co-CEOs Randy and Dave Koch established Koch Industries Inc. in Minnesota in 1978, initially distributing wire rope to farm stores. They weighed in on the acquisition.
“For 45 years, we have built Koch Industries with the goal of delivering quality products with the highest level of service for our customers,” says Randy Koch. “Transitioning our business to Hillman was an obvious choice, considering their strong competitive moat and track record of growth and service.”
“We believe this is an outstanding fit for our employees, as well as our customers, and are confident that Hillman will continue to serve both exceptionally well,” says Dave Koch.
Koch’s 2,300 SKUs are in the complex, high-touch, rope and chain and associated hardware category which adds to Hillman’s existing 112,000 SKU-portfolio. Koch’s customers include local and national retailers in the traditional hardware and farm and fleet channels based in the U.S. During its fiscal year ended May 31, 2023, Koch’s revenue totaled approximately $45 million. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Founded in 1964 and headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, Hillman Solutions Corp. and its subsidiaries provide hardware solutions to over 40,000 locations in North America.
Earlier this year, Hillman announced its new distribution center in Belton, Missouri.
