The AMES acquisition complements GMS’s current offerings, significantly expanding the company’s presence in the tools and fasteners market.
GMS Inc., a North American specialty distributor of building products, recently announced that it entered into a definitive agreement to acquire AMES Taping Tools Holding LLC. AMES is a provider of automatic taping and finishing (ATF) tools and related products, with the aim of increasing work production.
AMES provides a distinctive complement to GMS’s current offerings, significantly expanding the company’s presence in the attractive tools and fasteners market. Its portfolio includes the finishing tool brand, TapeTech, and the top specialty interior finishing e-commerce platform, All-Wall.
“AMES has highly-respected brands and an entrepreneurial culture with an attractive growth plan, which all align well with our strategic priorities and provide an excellent opportunity for GMS to expand our presence in the growing ATF tools market,” said John C. Turner, Jr., president and CEO of GMS.
For the 12 months ended September 30, 2021, AMES achieved net sales of approximately $100 million. The transaction is expected to close in the company’s fiscal third quarter 2022 with a purchase price of $212.5 million in cash.
“With its multichannel distribution model and strong customer relationships, AMES is expected to generate accretive EBITDA margins for GMS. We believe this transaction will add immediate benefits as part of one of our strategic growth priorities to diversify our core product offerings, and will further position GMS to drive long-term growth and shareholder value,” added Turner.
“We are excited about the opportunity to join the GMS team,” said Jay Davisson, president and CEO of AMES. “Like GMS, customer service has been a cornerstone of the AMES business since our founding over 80 years ago. Building on our strong, existing relationships, we are excited to bring our customer-first culture and deep industry matter expertise to GMS to create a best-in-class product and service experience for our customers and growth opportunities for employees.”
AMES services customers through its multichannel distribution model including:
1. AMES stores – supplies, supports, and services residential and commercial interior finishing applications through a network of more than 85 store locations that sell drywall finishing products and provide drywall contractors with the option to purchase or rent ATF tools from a 100,000-tool fleet shared by AMES stores platform-wide.
2. Dealer distribution – sales of TapeTech Automatic Taping and Finishing Tools and related TapeTech branded products through dealers and distributors, including a significant relationship with GMS’s subsidiary, Tool Source Warehouse.
3. All-Wall e-commerce platform – E-Commerce retailer of specialty interior finishing tools and related products.
Filed Under: Fastener industry news, Tools for fastening