THE STERLING GROUP FORMS NEW PLATFORM,
FENCING SUPPLY GROUP COMPLETES FIRST ACQUISITION – MERCHANTS METALS
March 1, 2021 (Houston, Texas) – The Sterling Group, an operationally focused middle market private equity firm, today announced the formation of Fencing Supply Group (“FSG”), a new platform focused on building a group of industry-leading, independent fencing distributors. FSG businesses serve professional fencing contractors who provide new, improvement, and repair fencing services across residential, industrial, commercial, and infrastructure end markets.
Fencing Supply Group is pleased to announce the acquisition of Merchants Metals (“Merchants”) effective on February 26. Merchants is the first acquisition of the FSG platform. Merchants is a leading national value-added distributor of fence supplies in the U.S., serving customers through 35 branches and 4 complementary manufacturing facilities across 28 states.
“Merchants is a nationally recognized leader in fencing today and we are excited about partnering with Andrea Hogan and the entire Merchants team to support them in continuing to grow the Merchants business,” said Brian Henry, Partner at The Sterling Group.
“Fencing Supply Group is a platform that will promote and enable growth for independent distributors of fencing materials nationwide. I look forward to being a part of the leading network of fencing distributors led by industry experts and entrepreneurs who come together to create value for customers, employees, and suppliers,” said Andrea Hogan, CEO of Merchants.
Sterling has deep experience in the building products distribution industry, having previously partnered with entrepreneur owners to build Roofing Supply Group, Construction Supply Group, and Artisan Design Group. Fencing Supply Group and Sterling intend to continue to support the platform through organic growth initiatives as well as an active acquisition strategy.
About Fencing Supply Group
Founded in 2021, Fencing Supply Group (“FSG”) is a group of industry-leading, independent fencing distributors. FSG businesses serve professional fencing contractors who provide new, improvement, and repair fencing services across residential, industrial, commercial, and infrastructure end markets. The FSG model combines local relationships, service, and expertise with national scale and resources for the benefit of customers, employees, and suppliers.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $750 million. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 58 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $14.0 billion. Sterling currently has over $4.0 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.