Bristol-based Anderson Manufacturing has been acquired by the principals of Big Shoulders Capital. The transaction closed July 17 for an undisclosed price.
Northbrook, Illinois-based Big Shoulders provides turnaround and restructuring financing services such as asset-backed loans and sale-leasebacks.
Anderson manufactures automotive products including specialty and complex terminals, pins, rivets, screws and studs, and also completes secondary operations like thread rolling, tapping, grinding, sorting and packaging. It was founded in 1976 and has about 50 employees running three shifts at its 52,000-square-foot plant in Bristol.
Anderson was previously owned by Bloomfield Hills, Michigan-based private equity firm BlackEagle Partners, which bought the company last year from Milwaukee-based investment bank Bridgewood Advisors.
Big Shoulders’ principals, David Muslin and Todd DiBenedetto, plan to expand Anderson through organic growth into new markets and strategic acquisitions.
“We saw this as an opportunity to invest in a company with a demonstrated track record of success and a high ceiling for the future,” said David Muslin, principal of Big Shoulders. “Anderson had a tough year following a failed roll-up strategy by a private equity group. The company was linked to Rockford Products, which has since gone out of business. Now, we intend to invest in Anderson and return it to its position as one of the leading specialty fastener manufacturers in the nation.”
The new owners also have restructured the Anderson leadership team, bringing back a long-term executive, Tim Cash, as president.
“We intend to reinvigorate the business, beginning with additions to our engineering department and then building every area of expertise,” Cash said. “Our business is very specialized and requires an expertise that is not common among mass producers of fasteners. We thrive on solving challenging issues and in creating high-quality precision fasteners for applications in medical, automotive, electronics, appliances, hardware and housewares.
“We have highly skilled and experienced team members who allow us to create solutions where others simply can’t. Our plan is to leverage and grow that expertise.”
