Value Added Distributors, Exotic Automation merge to form fluid power & motion control platform. The combination creates a super-regional distributor with 38 locations serving industrial MRO, OEM and mobile-equipment customers across the Midwest and South. Value Added Distributors and Exotic Automation & Supply have merged, creating a 38-location industrial fluid power and automation distribution and fabrication platform spanning the Midwest and South. Shawano, WI-based VAD is a portfolio company of private equity firm Rotunda Capital Partners, which invested in the distributor in 2024. Financial terms of the merger were not disclosed. Founded in 1995, VAD distributes hoses, tubes, seals, couplings and related products to specialty vehicle original equipment manufacturers and other mobile fluid power customers. The company operates 18 facilities and provides custom fabrication, assembly, kitting and vendor managed inventory services. New Hudson, MI-based Exotic was founded in 1963 and operates 20 locations across Michigan and Indiana. Its portfolio includes custom hoses and fittings, hydraulic and pneumatic components, filtration, lubrication equipment, molded rubber products, engineered power units and compressed-air equipment and services, primarily serving industrial MRO customers. The companies said the combination will expand their vendor and customer bases while adding scale across operations, warehousing, information technology, finance and human resources. The combined distributor will serve industrial MRO, industrial OEM and mobile-equipment customers. Both companies are major Parker Hannifin distributors. Exotic said their combined network will include 24 ParkerStores across Michigan, Wisconsin and Indiana. VAD Chief Executive Mike Kostelnik will remain CEO of the combined company, while Exotic President Steve Orlando will become president. Exotic CEO Tom Marino will remain an equity holder and join the combined company's board of directors. Exotic separately said Marino will retire from his executive role. Both leadership teams and other key managers will remain with the business, the companies said. "The combination of VAD and Exotic allows us to serve a broad range of MRO, industrial OEM and mobile customers," Orlando said. "Integrated, we become a super-regional, scaled industrial fluid power and automation distributor and fabricator." Rotunda's initial investment thesis for VAD emphasized expansion through new locations and acquisitions in adjacent categories, including filtration, gaskets, wire harnesses and motion control systems. VAD expanded its wire-harness manufacturing capabilities in December through the acquisition of L.T.L. Supply. MDM analysis. The merger meaningfully broadens VAD beyond its mobile fluid power and OEM foundation by adding Exotic's industrial MRO, automation, pneumatic, electromechanical, rubber, plastics and compressed-air capabilities. Exotic gains access to VAD's fabrication, kitting and embedded inventory programs, creating cross-selling opportunities across a wider customer base. With 38 locations, a deep Parker relationship and Rotunda's backing, the combined business now has the scale and product breadth of a significant super-regional competitor - and a stronger foundation for continued acquisition-driven expansion in the fragmented fluid power and automation market. Mike Hockett is MDM's executive editor, having joined the publication in March 2022. He oversees MDM's editorial content and direction, coordinates with contributing authors, conducts interviews with executives in the wholesale distribution space and serves as the editorial face of MDM at industry events. He has extensively covered the distribution and manufacturing sectors since 2014. Hockett works from his home in Madison, WI. He can be contacted at [email protected]. Recommended Reading

Exotic has merged with Value Added Distributors! Since its founding in 1963, its goal has always been to provide you with quality product solutions, unparallel support and outstanding service levels. Over the past 60 years, Exotic Automation & Supply Inc. has grown to become one of largest fluid power distributors in the United States with nineteen store locations and an unmatched level of support by its customer service and account management team. It is with great pride Exotic Automation & Supply Inc. announce today the next chapter in its journey. Exotic Automation & Supply Inc. is merging with Wisconsin fluid power distributor, Value Added Distributors. Value Added Distributors (VAD) is a leading Parker Hannifin distributor of hoses, tubes, seals, couplings and related products to specialty vehicle OEMs and mobile fluid power users. VAD, headquartered in Shawano, WI, was founded in 1995 and operates out of 18 facilities across the Midwest and Southern US. They are known for providing highly value-added services such as custom fabrication, assembly, kitting, and vendor managed inventory solutions. Companies under the VAD umbrella include Bent Tubes, LLC and Transmotion, LLC. What to Expect? - Network of 24 ParkerStores across Michigan, Wisconsin & Indiana - Enhanced product lines and resources - Expanded value-added service capabilities - Continued support from the representatives you've worked with over the years - Accounting information, phone numbers and email addresses will stay the same Key Management Updates: * Mike Kostelnik, current CEO of VAD will continue as the CEO of the combined company. * Steve Orlando, current President of Exotic, will continue as President of the combined company. * Tom Marino, current CEO of Exotic will retire and join the Board of Directors for the combined company.