Essendant And Genuine Parts Company's S.P. Richards Business To Combine To Form Stronger, More Competitive National Business Products Distributor

DEERFIELD, Ill., and ATLANTA, April 12, 2018 -- Essendant (Nasdaq: ESND) and Genuine Parts Company (NYSE: GPC) today announced that the companies have entered into a definitive agreement to combine Essendant and Genuine Parts Company's S.P. Richards business. The transaction, which has been unanimously approved by the Boards of Essendant and Genuine Parts Company, is expected to be tax free to the companies' respective shareholders. Together, Essendant and S.P. Richards will form a stronger, more competitive business products distributor with greater scale and service capabilities and an enhanced ability to support customers.

Bringing together leadership and operational expertise from Essendant and S.P. Richards and combining the best elements of each business' operations will create an even stronger company with the ability to harness each organization's unique strengths and capitalize on opportunities to create value, including:

• Greater resources to support and partner with the independent dealer channel and resellers in other sales channels, and invest to drive enhanced value for customers, consumers and shareholders;
• Optimized product assortment of branded and private-label products across a broad set of categories;
• Enhanced capability to develop and offer innovative solutions to our customers, including value-added marketing and analytics to drive demand; and
• Consolidated distribution network with greater efficiencies throughout the entire supply chain.

Ric Phillips, Essendant President and Chief Executive Officer, who will lead the combined company, said, "By bringing together two businesses with long histories, complementary product lines and a shared customer-centric approach, we are creating a much stronger, better positioned company. Combining resources, leadership and operational expertise from both teams, and the unique strengths of both businesses will enhance our ability to compete and help our customers succeed in the face of a rapidly evolving market. In addition, through increased scale, improved service capabilities and an enhanced financial profile – including significant cost savings, increased free cash flow and a stronger balance sheet – we will be able to drive more profitable growth and create meaningful value for shareholders."

Paul Donahue, Genuine Parts Company President and Chief Executive Officer, added, "This transaction is the result of a comprehensive process to maximize the value of S.P. Richards and represents a key step in the execution of Genuine Parts Company's long-term strategy by enabling us to increase our focus on our larger, core global automotive and industrial businesses. In addition, the merger provides substantial upside to Genuine Parts Company shareholders through the significant value proposition of the combined company that will be better equipped to succeed in a dynamic and changing marketplace. We have tremendous respect for Essendant and believe the combination with S.P. Richards' strong, diversified business and talented team will bring together two highly complementary cultures with a shared commitment to serving customers. For employees, the new company will have the scale and depth to compete more effectively, and we look forward to supporting the S.P. Richards and Essendant teams in facilitating a seamless integration." (Essendant)