Transitions

This past week, we received two announcements about company sales. First, we heard that Ron Farmer, who owned both US Signs and US LED, has sold the former to Hartford, CT-based FM Facilities Maintenance, which describes itself as a “provider of outsourced facility maintenance services.” It began in 1993 with HVAC, and its website says it handles 11 facility concerns, one of which is signage, at more than 30,000 facilities.

Four days later, a much bigger announcement followed. Gerber Scientific, the parent company of Gerber Scientific Products, announced it would sell itself to a private-equity firm, Vector Capital Corp., for $281 million, pending stockholder approval, and provider a better offer isn’t tendered by July 25.

In the first instance, a well-known member of the sign industry found that his 31-year-old sign company (which began as a traditional sign company, but changed its business model seven years later to outsource its manufacturing) conflicted with his ownership of an LED-component firm. Ron said some sign companies didn’t want to buy LEDs from a “competitor.” He wants to concentrate on US LED.

Interestingly, Signs of the Times magazine is currently surveying sign-brokerage firms about their activities. The June issue’s editorial primarily included commentary from the owners of such companies, and the magazine will address this topic soon.

In the meantime, the day after the Gerber announcement, Harwood Feffer LLP, a national shareholder-litigation firm, issued a statement. The announcement says: “Our investigation concerns whether the board of directors has undertaken a fair process to obtain fair consideration for all shareholders of Gerber.” Gerber shareholders may call (877) 935-7400, or contact Robert Harwood at rharwood@hsesq.com.

In Signs of the Times’ upcoming July 2011 article about Columbus Sign Co.’s centennial, company president Mike Hoy will rate the company’s purchase of a Gerber Signmaker III in 1983 as its most significant milestone in his 40 years there.
 

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