BIRMINGHAM, AL (March 8, 2023) – Founders is pleased to announce that certain principals of Founders Advisors advised Inventory Sales Company (“ISC”) in its sale to Frontenac-backed EFC International (“EFC”).

ISC, founded in 1972 by Jim Friedmann and headquartered in St. Louis, MO, is a distributor of Class-C parts with a primary focus on fasteners and strut accessories. The company has a highly reputable and well-established brand and is known for outstanding levels of service through its broad capabilities including vendor managed inventory programs, in-house fabrication, kitting, and a strong sales force. ISC also has operations and a warehouse in Kansas City, KS and St. Elizabeth, MO.

EFC, based in St. Louis, MO, operates globally and provides solutions such as engineering support, sales and marketing, distribution, and high-touch service to customers in the automotive, industrial, and other technical end markets. The Company has served as a critical link between suppliers and customers for over 35 years. EFC has a history of growth driven by longstanding supplier relationships and a tenured customer base.

ISC President, Cathy Friedmann, who will continue to lead ISC, added that “This combination of our two companies is such a great fit; it gives us the platform to grow beyond what we ever previously imagined. EFC dramatically enhances our technical capabilities and our product and service offerings as well as geographic footprint. The customer has always been king at ISC, and now we can serve them even better than before. This acquisition creates additional opportunities for our customers, suppliers, and employees alike.”

Vaughn McCrary, Director at Founders covering the specialty distribution sector, noted “Upon meeting Cathy, the Friedmann family and the ISC team, it was clear how much they cared about their people and thus finding the right partner was paramount. We believe EFC is the ideal fit and look forward to seeing the combined businesses flourish.”

Cathy Friedmann added “The Founders team did an outstanding job assisting us with the selection of a new partner for ISC. We were impressed with their knowledge of our market as well as their thoughtful advice at key decision points.”

About Founders Advisors

Founders is a merger, acquisition, & strategic advisory firm serving middle-market companies. Founders focuses on helping companies across industrial, technology, business services, consumer, and healthcare industries. Founders’ skilled professionals, proven expertise, and process-based solutions help companies access growth capital, make acquisitions, and/or prepare for and execute liquidity events to achieve specific financial goals. In order to provide securities-related services discussed herein, certain principals of Founders Advisors, LLC are licensed with Founders M&A Advisory, LLC, member FINRA and SIPC. Founders M&A Advisory, LLC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Founders Advisors, LLC. Founders Advisors, LLC does not provide investment advice. For more information, please visit www.foundersib.com.

About ISC

St. Louis-based Inventory Sales Company is a distributor of fasteners, specialty components, struts, and strut accessories to a diversified group of customers and industrial end markets. ISC creates value through stocking a large breadth of product and acting as an outsourced, scaled purchasing team for its customers. Service capabilities include VMI programs, customized kitting/packaging/labeling, in-house fabrication, stud welding, technical product assistance and global sourcing. The company provides valued customer service by having short lead times, a wide selection of products, customized inventory programs, and by following a simple mantra – “The Customer is King”. To learn more, please explore www.inventorysales.com.

About EFC

EFC International, headquartered in St. Louis, is a global provider of engineered fasteners and specialized component solutions serving the automotive, electrified vehicle, industrial and distribution marketplaces. Providing a high level of engineering support to customers and protecting supply chains is a cornerstone of EFC’s model. Close supplier partnerships with market leaders and innovators enables EFC to meet the unique and evolving needs of each customer. EFC’s engineered products include plastic injection molded components, spring steel stampings, cold-formed fasteners, clamp products, motion control and routing components, electrical/electronic connectors, and light assemblies among numerous other products. EFC has locations in North America, Europe and Asia. To learn more about EFC and to explore their online engineering guides, please visit www.efc-intl.com.