C.L. Smith Set to Expand Through Acquisition

C.L. Smith Company is looking to grow, and 2020 is the year for it.  The WBENC certified business owned by Nancy Smith is pleased to announce its acquisition strategy for 2020 and beyond.

C.L. Smith (CLS) is a premier packaging provider that is second to none, with over 45 years of industry experience.  Exceptional customer care & service is a top priority at CLS and their wheelhouse includes full stocking distribution, custom packaging design & manufacturing, and turnkey hazardous material shipping solutions. 

The Mergers & Acquisitions Team at C.L. Smith consists of the company’s top executives and is being led by President & CEO, Sarah Macdonald.  Their focus is to identify strategic opportunities for growth by enhancing current product offerings and extending the reach of distribution while maintaining best-in-class customer service.

C.L. Smith aligns its people, assets, and strategy around decisions that will facilitate growth and opportunity for years to come.  It is a priority for CLS to adopt and embrace businesses through mergers & acquisitions, not dissolve them.  Future partners can expect to benefit from the existing platform, products, leadership, and brand.

“We are a strong leader in packaging and are seeking to acquire or partner with distributors that will facilitate growth within existing & new markets, expand our footprint, and further enhance our product portfolio,” Sarah Macdonald.

Adding value is not new to C.L. Smith.  HAZPlus, the hazardous material packaging division of CLS, was started in 2001.  The addition of regulatory compliant packaging and the expansion of an onsite testing facility distinguishes C.L. Smith from competitors and is an example of what they are looking for in future acquisitions & partnerships.

Warehousing & distribution will also play an integral part in future growth for CLS.  Careful consideration is being given by the team to identify targets within the Midwest & South Central regions for expansion of CLS’s logistical footprint and, on a nation-wide basis, for expansion of CLS’s hazardous materials packaging product offering & services.

Lyons Blow Molding, the manufacturing division of C.L. Smith, provides a service to a niche market of buyers.  Self-manufacturing of bottles & containers provides line flexibility and shorter run times for customers.  The ability to replicate this service in a new location will facilitate growth for the organization.

According to Macdonald, an ideal acquisition or partnership would include a packaging distributor (and potentially a manufacturer) of products that would complement or enhance the existing product line & markets being served by C.L. Smith.

Current markets presently served by CLS are Industrial, Hazardous Packaging, Environmental Waste, Chemicals, Janitorial Supplies, Construction & Building Restoration, Paint & Coatings, Automotive Lubricants, Food & Specialty Food (flavorings, concentrates), Medical & Pharma Packaging, Animal Health, Cannabis, and many more.  Existing products provided by CLS for these markets are plastic bottles, jars, plastic tubs, caps, closures, pumps & sprayers, IBC’s, drums, pails, metal cans, glass, & hazardous material containment & packaging.

C.L. Smith is interested in acquiring products & services to complement current offerings such as flexibles, glass, PET bottles, trigger sprayers, cannabis packaging, super sacks/flexible IBC’s, pail & drum liners, in addition to labels, design, decoration, and other unique value-added services.

C.L. Smith has a robust company culture with core values of being passionate, dedicated, authentic, collaborative, trustworthy, best-in-class, operating with a sense of urgency, adding value, & providing service to others.  It is important to partner with a company that presently shares these values or would be willing to adopt them.

Acquisition candidates can expect to achieve a broader footprint, be presented with cross-selling opportunities, and experience employee growth & advancement within a thriving company culture.

If you would like to set up an exploratory call, please contact Sarah Macdonald, President & CEO, at aquisitions@clsmith.com.

*** Note – C.L. Smith was acquired by Kelso & Company on May 1st, 2021 and is no long a WBENC Certified Business ***