Filed by Essendant Inc.
pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act of 1933
and deemed
filed pursuant to Rule 14a-12
under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Filer: Essendant Inc.
Subject Company: Essendant Inc.
SEC File No.: 000-10653
April 12, 2018
Dear Valued Partner,
This morning, Essendant announced that we
have agreed to combine with Genuine Parts Companys S.P. Richards business to create a stronger, more competitive national business products distributor. This is an exciting step for us, and we wanted to reach out and share our perspective on
what this opportunity means for Essendant and our suppliers.
We have been hard at work evolving our business amid the rapidly changing landscape facing
our industry. Todays announcement represents a major step in that effort, and we are excited about the opportunities that combining with S.P. Richards will create to support our partners, invest in our business and ensure the long-term
strength of the channels we serve.
We believe this combination will directly benefit customers in several ways, including:
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Greater resources to support and partner with the independent dealer channel and resellers in other sales channels, and to invest to drive enhanced value for customers, consumers and shareholders;
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Optimized product assortment of branded and private-label products across a broad set of categories;
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Enhanced capability to develop and offer innovative solutions to our customers, including value-added marketing and analytics to drive demand; and
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Consolidated distribution network with greater efficiencies throughout the entire supply chain.
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We are
confident that our suppliers will experience significant benefits from this transaction, including:
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Improved, long term industry dynamics to support a more competitive independent reseller channel; and
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Operational efficiencies from dealing with one, stronger partner better able to work with resellers to drive consumer demand.
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As we combine the best of Essendant and S.P. Richards product assortments, distribution networks, operations and practices, our relationships with our
valued partners remain of the utmost importance to us. Ric Phillips will remain CEO and Janet Zelenka will remain CFO of the combined company, which will be called Essendant. We will be joined by Ric Toppin, S.P. Richards President and CEO,
who will become COO. We look forward to being a financially stronger, more competitive partner for you as we continue working together.
Importantly,
todays news is just the first step as we begin the approval and integration process. As such, we do not expect any changes in the near term. When the transaction closes, which is expected before the end of 2018, the combined company will be
led by a blended team of current Essendant and S.P. Richards leaders focused on leveraging the best of both our businesses. Until then, Essendant and S.P. Richards will continue to operate as separate businesses, and your point of contact at
Essendant will remain the same.
As always, thank you for your continued partnership. We will keep you informed of any developments as appropriate, but in
the meantime, please feel free to reach out with any questions.
Sincerely,
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Ric Phillips
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Keith Dougherty
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Essendant CEO
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Essendant SVP Merchandising, Inventory, Pricing
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ESSENDANT One Parkway North Boulevard, Suite 100, Deerfield, IL 60015 O 847 627 7000
***
Cautionary Statement
This communication contains
forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the proposed business combination transaction between Essendant Inc. (
Essendant
) and Genuine Parts Company (
GPC
) in which GPC will separate its Business
Products Group and combine this business with Essendant. From time to time, oral or written forward-looking statements may also be included in other information released to the public. These forward-looking statements are intended to provide
managements current expectations or plans for our future operating and financial performance, based on assumptions currently believed to be valid. Forward-looking statements often contain words such as expects,
anticipates, estimates, intends, plans, believes, seeks, will, is likely to, scheduled, positioned to, continue,
forecast, predicting, projection, potential or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements may include references to goals, plans, strategies, objectives, projected costs or savings, anticipated
future performance, results, events or transactions of Essendant or the combined company following the proposed transaction, the anticipated benefits of the proposed transaction, including estimated synergies, the expected timing of completion of
the transaction and other statements that are not strictly historical in nature. These forward-looking statements are based on managements current expectations, forecasts and assumptions. This means they involve a number of risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied here, including but not limited to: the ability of Essendant and GPC to receive the required regulatory approvals for the proposed transaction and
approval of Essendants stockholders and to satisfy the other conditions to the closing of the transaction on a timely basis or at all; the occurrence of events that may give rise to a right of one or both of Essendant and GPC to terminate the
merger agreement; negative effects of the announcement or the consummation of the transaction on the market price of Essendants common stock and/or on its business, financial condition, results of operations and financial performance; risks
relating to the value of the Essendant shares to be issued in the transaction, significant transaction costs and/or unknown liabilities; the possibility that the anticipated benefits from the proposed transaction cannot be realized in full or at all
or may take longer to realize than expected; risks associated with contracts containing consent and/or other provisions that may be triggered by the proposed transaction; risks associated with transaction-related litigation; the possibility that
costs or difficulties related to the integration of the businesses will be greater than expected; and the ability of the combined company to retain and hire key personnel. There can be no assurance that the proposed transaction or any other
transaction described above will in fact be consummated in the manner described or at all. Stockholders, potential investors and other readers are urged to consider these risks and uncertainties in evaluating forward-looking statements and are
cautioned not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements. For additional information on identifying factors that may cause actual results to vary materially from those stated in forward-looking statements, please see Essendants
and GPCs reports on Forms
10-K,
10-Q
and
8-K
filed with or furnished to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the
SEC
) and other written statements made by Essendant and/or GPC from time to time. The forward-looking information herein is given as of this date only, and neither Essendant nor GPC undertakes any obligation to revise or update
it.
Additional Information
In connection with the
proposed transaction, Essendant will file with the SEC a registration statement on Form
S-4
containing a proxy statement/prospectus of Essendant and Rhino SpinCo, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of GPC created
for the proposed transaction (
SpinCo
), will file with the SEC a registration statement on Form 10.
INVESTORS AND SECURITY HOLDERS ARE URGED TO READ THE REGISTRATION STATEMENTS, THE PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS AND OTHER RELEVANT
DOCUMENTS FILED WITH THE SEC WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE, BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION.
Investors and security holders will be able to obtain the registration statements and the proxy statement/prospectus free of charge from
the SECs website or from Essendant or GPC. The documents filed by Essendant with the SEC may be obtained free of charge at Essendants website at www.essendant.com, at the SECs website at www.sec.gov or by contacting
Essendants Investor Relations Department at (847)
627-2900.
The documents filed by SpinCo with the SEC may be obtained free of charge at GPCs website at www.genpt.com, at the SECs website at
www.sec.gov or by contacting GPCs Investor Relations Department at (678)
934-5000.
ESSENDANT One Parkway
North Boulevard, Suite 100, Deerfield, IL 60015
O
847 627 7000
Participants in the Solicitation
Essendant, GPC and their respective directors and executive officers and other members of management and employees may be deemed to be participants in the
solicitation of proxies in respect of the proposed transaction. Information about Essendants directors and executive officers is available in Essendants proxy statement for its 2017 annual meeting of stockholders, which was filed with
the SEC on April 12, 2017, its Annual Report on Form
10-K
for the year ended December 31, 2017, which was filed with the SEC on February 21, 2018, and its Current Reports on Form
8-K,
which were filed with the SEC on May 2, 2017, June 13, 2017, July 17, 2017, October 25, 2017, December 28, 2017 and March 8, 2018. Information about GPCs directors and
executive officers is available in GPCs proxy statement for its 2018 annual meeting of shareholders, which was filed with the SEC on February 27, 2018. Other information regarding the participants in the proxy solicitation and a
description of their direct and indirect interests, by security holdings or otherwise, will be contained in the registration statements, the proxy statement/prospectus and other relevant documents to be filed with the SEC regarding the proposed
transaction.
No Offer or Solicitation
This
communication shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to
registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. No offering of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
ESSENDANT One Parkway
North Boulevard, Suite 100, Deerfield, IL 60015 O 847 627 7000
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