Laces Group, a portfolio company of Canadian private equity firm Novacap, has acquired most of the assets and operations of Zenith Products Corp, a maker of bathroom furnitures, fixtures and accessories based in New Castle, Delaware. No financial terms were released for the deal, which will see Zenith’s management and operating team remain in place. Laces, a Canadian home fashion products specialist, said the acquisition gives it manufacturing capabilities in the United States as well as an expanded product range. Based in Montréal, Laces operates through its Maytex subsidiaries in the United States and through Banyo-Decolin in Canada. Novacap invested in the business in 2014.
PRESS RELEASE
Zenith Products Joins Laces Group
Montréal, [February 22, 2016] – Laces (Laces Group), an innovative company that specializes in the development and distribution of home fashion products headquartered in Montreal, Québec, today announced that the Zenith Corporation, a Delaware-based bathroom products manufacturer and importer, will integrate a majority of its assets and operations into the company. Zenith’s management and operating team will remain in place.
This transaction marks a significant step forward to augment Laces’ capacity as a world-class leader in the supply of high quality, innovative home products, as the agreement with Zenith products allows it to develop manufacturing capabilities in the US.
“Zenith enjoys a fine reputation with our customers and offers very competitive and complementary products.” said Leonard Mendel, President and CEO of Laces. “With the acquisition of Zenith, we are acquiring manufacturing capabilities in the US to fulfill our goal of providing “Made in America” competitive products”, said Alyssa Rappaport, the new chairman of Zenith. “Furthermore, it allows us to expand our product range and reinforce our offering. We were particularly impressed with the Zenith management team and their deep industry experience and relationships, including a highly-skilled sales and product development staff.”
“Zenith is a very strategic partnership for Laces,” added Marc Paiement, Laces’s Chairman and Senior Partner at NOVACAP. “Its track record is impressive and it is well positioned for continued long-term growth. It also allows us to foster our manufacturing and servicing capabilities in the United States, and will contribute in the mid to long term to the success of all our customers, and to our positioning as an industry leader throughout North America. It is well in line with NOVACAP’s strategy to invest in its portfolio companies in order to build them into growth platforms and segment leaders.”
“The growing demand for our products has the potential to more than double the Company’s size in years to come”, said Mary Beth Martino, CEO of Zenith. “We are already well-positioned to handle growth with our advanced technical expertise and substantial equipment and infrastructure investments already completed, but Laces offers us the expertise, sales force and network to achieve this objective. Its excellent track record of sales growth, operational excellence, and superior customer service will add to our history of reliability, competence, and consistency, which has led to a continuous flow of new products.”
Laces is the leader in its industry, while remaining the only North American player with the critical mass needed to play a major role internationally.
ABOUT LACES GROUP
Laces Group is an innovative company that specializes in the development and distribution of home fashion products. Headquartered in Montreal, Canada, it is a global operation with offices in the USA, Canada and China. It operates through Maytex in the United States and Banyo-Decolin in Canada. With multiple warehouses in North America and an innovation center in New York, Laces creates, develops, sources and distributes home fashion products, mainly shower curtains, metal bath and window products, window curtains and slipcovers to national retailers. More at www.maytex.com .
ABOUT ZENITH CORPORATION
Founded in the 1940s, Zenith Products Corp. (ZPC) is a privately held company with 400 employees who designs and manufactures bath furnitures, fixtures and accessories, with state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities in New Castle, Delaware, and a New York City showroom. Zenith products are sold under the Zenith, Zenna Homes, Never Rust, India Ink and American Pride brands, and are distributed in the United States and internationally through major national retailers, home centers, bed and bath specialty shops, department stores and catalog retailers, as well as online. For more information about Zenith Corporation, please visit www.zenith-products.com .
ABOUT NOVACAP
With assets under management of over $1.5 billion, NOVACAP has consistently been recognized as one of the leading private equity firms in Canada since 1981. Its unique collaborative approach with entrepreneurs, based on deep operational expertise and active management of its investment, has helped accelerate growth and maximize value of more than 70 companies across North America. NOVACAP’s culture is based on creating long-term value through an investment philosophy focused on discipline and growth. With an experienced management team and substantial financial resources, NOVACAP is well positioned to continue building world-class companies. For more information, please visit www.novacap.ca.
Source: NOVACAP / Laces Group
Media contacts: Valerie Gonzalo, AGO communications
Office: 514-626-6976
Cell: 514-923-1549
valerie@agocom.ca
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