Almo CEO Warren Chaiken will retain his role under the new owners.

By Alan Wolf, YSN

  • Bought out by Dublin-based tech distributor
  • Management team to remain in place
  • Becomes a unit of Exertis North America

BrandSource distribution partner Almo Corp. has been acquired by Exertis, a global tech distributor headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.

Under terms of the deal, Almo’s current management team will remain in place, including president/CEO Warren Chaiken and his dad, Gene, who continues as chairman.

In addition, Jack Halperin will continue to oversee Almo’s core home appliance business and Steve Terry will retain responsibility for the company’s premium appliance division.

On the tech side, Sam Taylor, who runs Almo’s Pro AV operation, will be tapped to head a combined Exertis Almo Pro AV unit.

In a statement, Warren Chaiken said the time is right for the 75-year-old appliance, CE and home furnishings business “to give our manufacturer and channel partners a truly global distribution stage so they can operate their businesses at a greater capacity, leverage more buying power and the ability to compete for a more comprehensive position in the global supply chain.”

See: Happy 75th, Almo!

He continued, “We are committed to growing with our partners by remaining their value-added distributor with larger scale and access to more products, more services and more financial support. For them, this transition will be seamless in that we will operate business as usual.”

No purchase price was disclosed, although Exertis described the acquisition as the largest in its history, and said the move signals a ramped-up expansion strategy for the North American market and the pro A/V sector in particular.

Exertis entered North America in 2018 with the acquisitions of U.S. and Canadian tech distributors Stampede and Jam Industries. Almo will join the combined operation, Exertis North America, which is led by former Jam CEO Marty Szpiro and will now boast $2.4 billion in business.

Exertis itself is a nearly $6 billion business with some 2,400 tech brands under its wings and operations in Europe, North America, Middle East and China. Its parent company, DCC plc, describes itself as an entrepreneurial sales, marketing and support services group supporting the energy, healthcare and tech industries across 21 countries.

In a statement, Exertis managing director Tim Griffin described Almo’s 75-year history of growth and success, and its longstanding relationships with industry partners as “great assets.” In turn, he said, Exertis “will bring significant economies of scale, global supply chain access and other benefits to the customers of Almo Corporation.”

Almo was founded in 1946 by friends Al Margolis and Moe Green, who combined their names to give their new business a top spot in the alphabetical Yellow Pages phone listings.

Upcoming Events