Why This Matters: Myers Industries is exiting the tire supply distribution business, selling the 93-year-old Myers Tire Supply to Lion Equity Partners as it concentrates on its core manufacturing operations. The deal puts a 233-employee distributor with four distribution centers under private equity ownership.
Myers Industries has sold its Myers Tire Supply North America business to private equity firm Lion Equity Partners for $30 million, ending the manufacturer’s ownership of a distribution operation that dates to 1933.
The Akron, Ohio-based company said it entered and completed the transaction with Denver-based Lion Equity. The $30 million purchase price is subject to customary post-closing adjustments for cash, debt, working capital and transaction expenses.
Myers Tire Supply distributes tools, equipment and supplies to the tire, wheel and under-vehicle service industry. Its customers include tire dealers, automotive service centers, commercial fleets, retreaders and other transportation-related businesses across North America.
The distributor employs 233 people. About 77 are based at its Akron headquarters, with the remainder working in remote sales positions and at four distribution centers across the country.
For Myers Industries, the sale is part of a broader effort to narrow its business around manufacturing. The company said proceeds from the transaction will strengthen its balance sheet and allow it to concentrate resources on engineered resin and composite products serving infrastructure, industrial, consumer, food and beverage, and vehicle markets.
“The completion of this transaction is a defining step in our ongoing transformation,” Myers Industries President and CEO Aaron Schapper said. “By sharpening our focus on our core specialty engineered products, we are better positioned to drive long-term growth and create value for our shareholders.”
Schapper also credited the Myers Tire Supply workforce and said the business is positioned for further growth under Lion Equity’s ownership.
The transaction gives Lion Equity an established distribution platform with a national customer base and a history stretching back more than nine decades. The private equity firm specializes in corporate divestitures and special situations and uses organic growth, operational improvements and add-on acquisitions to expand its portfolio companies.
“Myers Tire Supply has built a highly trusted brand through decades of exceptional service and commitment to its customers,” Lion Equity Managing Partner Jim Levitas said. “We are excited to partner with the team to carry this legacy forward and support the company in its next chapter of growth.”
KeyBanc served as Myers’ exclusive financial adviser on the sale. Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP served as legal adviser.
Myers Industries manufactures plastic, metal, engineered resin and composite products for consumer, vehicle, food and beverage, industrial and infrastructure markets. The divestiture of Myers Tire Supply further concentrates the company on those manufacturing businesses while shifting the long-standing distribution operation to a private equity owner.
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