MADISON HEIGHTS, MI – February 4, 2020 – Galco Industrial Electronics, Inc. (“Galco” or the “Company”), an industrial electronic components distributor, announced it has been acquired by Freeman Spogli & Co. (“Freeman Spogli”), management and other investors. Galco’s CEO, Mike Conwell, and the rest of the management team will continue to lead and operate the Company. Specific terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Headquartered in Madison Heights, Michigan, Galco is an e-commerce driven, maintenance, repair, and operations (“MRO”) focused distributor of electronic industrial control and automation components. Founded in 1975, Galco specializes in hard-to-find products and offers greater than 3 million SKUs to more than 64,000 customers within the United States and internationally. In addition to product distribution, Galco offers a full-suite of customer services including custom engineered systems and both send-in and on-site repair.
"We are delighted to partner with Freeman Spogli to support the Company’s next phase of growth," said CEO Mike Conwell. "Freeman Spogli's expertise in developing value-added distribution companies will be immensely valuable as we pursue multiple expansion opportunities and strategic initiatives over the years to come.”
Jon Ralph, Partner at Freeman Spogli, added "We are thrilled to announce our partnership with Galco. Mike Conwell and the rest of the Galco management team have done a terrific job of building the business through partnerships with vendors within both existing and new product categories as well as through strategic acquisitions. We are excited to support Galco as long-term investors in the Company.”
Freeman Spogli’s legal counsel was Ropes & Gray LLP. Galco was advised by BB&T Capital Markets and its legal counsel was Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP. Madison Capital and BMO Harris provided the debt financing to support the acquisition.
About Galco
Headquartered in Madison Heights, Michigan, Galco is a leading e-commerce driven, MRO focused distributor of Industrial and Commercial Electrical and Electronic Control, Automation and Motion, Lighting, and Power Transmission Products. The Company specializes in hard-to-find products and offers greater than 3 million SKUs to more than 64,000 customers within the United States and internationally. Galco offers a full-suite of customer services including custom engineered systems and both send-in and on-site repair. For more information, please visit www.galco.com.
About Freeman Spogli & Co.
Freeman Spogli & Co. is a private equity firm dedicated exclusively to investing in and partnering with management in consumer and distribution companies in the United States. Since its founding in 1983, Freeman Spogli has invested over $4.8 billion in 64 portfolio companies with an aggregate transaction value of over $24 billion, and is currently making investments from FS Equity Partners VIII, L.P. Freeman Spogli has offices in Los Angeles and New York. For additional information, visit www.freemanspogli.com.