SMITHFIELD, RI : The Business Value Forum invites business owners, executives and advisors to attend their Tuesday, September 17 meeting, “Company Growth Through Acquisition: Learn from insiders as they share their experiences.” The program will run from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. at Bryant University (The Bello Center).

 

On September 17th, The Business Value Forum will present a conversation with business owners and leaders who have successfully re-energized their companies through strategic acquisition. They’ll share what they’ve learned; their business motivations, disciplines, opportunities and challenges; and, perhaps, the sleepless nights that punctuated their experiences.  They’ll share the planning and integration of acquisitions that worked.

 

The presenters include:

 

(1)    Robert Israel, Sandvik Publishing Interactive, Danbury, Connecticut

Bob Israel has spent almost all of his career in the consumer direct marketing, recurring revenue (subscription) field. After five years as a product manager at MBI, Inc. (Danbury Mint, Easton Press) he was recruited to Lenox China where he spent the next decade in a variety of positions in both the consumer direct and key-account wholesale business.

 

After Lenox, he was offered the opportunity to lead a $15 million local, Norwegian-owned company that operated a book subscription called Baby’s First Book Club.  The company was quite distressed at the time but he recognized great potential.  Four years later, Scholastic, Inc. made an unsolicited offer and bought the company.  Israel and his Norwegian employer agreed to stay out of the business segment for five years and, five years later, they co-founded Sandvik Publishing Interactive, Inc (SPI).

After a failed attempt to build the new company from scratch with an entirely digital subscriber acquisition approach, SPI pursued a strategic acquisition that ultimately launched an 11-year successful run.  New brands were added by acquisitions of distressed companies in 2010 and 2016 and the company is currently on the hunt to add more.

(2)    David B. Murphy Jr., Contractors Supply Inc., Contractors Supply CCW, Inc & Contractors Supply Rental Corp.. East Providence, Rhode Island

David B. Murphy Jr. has spent twenty plus years as an entrepreneur developing, managing and growing businesses. Currently, he serves as President of Contractors Supply, Inc. and Contractors Supply Rental Corp.  Murphy joined Contractors Supply, Inc. in 2001 and has positioned Contractors Supply, Inc. into the premiere, full service, family owned and operated specialty distributor in the New England Construction Market.

He credits Contractors Supply’s expansion to continuous organic growth, as well as strategic acquisition of expansive market opportunities. The company’s growth strategies have taken the East Providence-based business to a regional player with locations in Dorchester, Massachusetts, and North Haven, Connecticut.

(3)    Ryan Kim, Organic Dyes and Pigments, LLC, East Providence, Rhode Island

Ryan Kim is an owner of Organic Dyes and Pigments (“ORCO”).  Through his experiences at ORCO and previously, he brings a broad perspective of the business impacts and opportunities available through acquisition.  He also serves as a Partner at Castle Island Partners, a private investment firm that he founded in 2006 after working at Bain Capital, DLJ and Parthenon Capital.  Through Castle Island and his partners, he has led numerous acquisitions and currently owns three businesses, including Organic Dyes and Pigments, a specialty chemicals manufacturer which continues to grow through balanced implementation of its operating and acquisition strategies.

Kim has over 20 years of experience in a wide range of industries, including food/beverage, industrial manufacturing/distribution, automotive aftermarket services and restaurants/retail. 

 

A full breakfast buffet will be served.  The cost to attend is $55 for registrations after September 13, and $45 for registrations in advance. To register for the event, please visit

 http://bit.ly/2zdD6xk

 

The Business Value Forum, Inc. is a non-profit, non-member organization offering unique information, learning and connection opportunities to New England business owners, leaders and advisors.

It was founded by members with decades of experience in business. It is a non-profit, non-member organization offering unique information, learning and connection opportunities to New England business owners, leaders and advisors. Formed in collaboration with Bryant University, the Forum offers programs focused on contemporary business challenges.  Additional Information about upcoming programs is available by visiting http://businessvalueforum.org.