Interline Brands: Don't Stop Believing

By: Nori Gerardo Lietz and Ricardo Andrade

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Synopsis: Interline Brands, a leading distributor of residential housing maintenance and repair parts and equipment in the U.S., had just held its November 2014 board meeting. The meeting had been productive, but not without some soul searching for both the company's management team and financial sponsors. Was now the right time to start a sale process? In particular, the team wondered whether the capital markets would cooperate and how effectively the management and sponsor teams would execute. Moreover, the company had only been private for two years, and the value creation plan was only halfway through completion. While there was much to be done at Interline, the company had performed well and was gaining momentum. Interline was a rare asset in terms of the scale it had reached. However, there were still unknowns. Would buyers reward Interline with a high valuation multiple that reflected its acceleration in organic growth? Would financing markets remain healthy? Would such a process disrupt Interline's customers and employees?