Herman Miller has entered into an agreement to acquire an 84% ownership in Design Within Reach for $154 million in cash. The deal is scheduled to close July 28. DWR’s Chief Executive Officer John Edelman and President John McPhee will together continue to lead the business within Herman Miller and report to Brian Walker, CEO of Herman Miller. Edelman and McPhee will convert their remaining ownership interest in DWR for an approximate 8.5% ownership stake in a newly formed Herman Miller consumer business unit.
Marketing VP Mark Simmons, COO John McPhee, Founder Rob Forbes, President and CEO John Edelman at the ribbon cutting for DWR San Francisco
“The addition of DWR is a transformational step forward in realizing our strategy for diversified growth and establishing Herman Miller as a premier lifestyle brand, helping people create inspiring places where they work, live, heal and learn," said Walker. "This combination expands our reach in the higher margin consumer sector and we have identified multiple points of strategic leverage that will benefit our other segments and operations, as well as DWR’s own growth plans.”
Herman Miller believes it will also benefit from access to DWR’s exclusive product portfolio, development capabilities, consumer-focused infrastructure, leadership team and workforce.
“We are thrilled to be joining the Herman Miller family," said Edelman and McPhee in a statement. "We’ve worked closely with the company and its leadership for many years and have great respect for their approach to business and people. We also share a passion for great design and making a difference in the world. This combination will enable us to accelerate our mission to make great, authentic modern design accessible.”
Herman Miller CEO Brian Walker
According to Walker, customers and fans of DWR have enthusiastically responded to the new flagship Studios model, now opened in nine key cities in North America. "We believe the continued implementation of this vision will expand the fan base for DWR and Herman Miller while delivering profitable growth for both organizations. While there are immediate strategic benefits to be gained by both organizations, earnings accretion, excluding the impact of one-time acquisition costs and required purchasing accounting adjustments, will be modest in our fiscal year that ends in June of 2015.”
