IDI Merges with AD to Become AD Canada Industrial & Safety

February 12, 2019

AD, the member owned buying/marketing group, is merging with IDI Independent Distributors Inc. effective April 1, 2019. IDI brings 107 independent industrial Canadian distributors with over 364 locations into the AD family. AD also welcomes 21 new employees and a distribution centre located in Mississauga, Ontario as part of the transaction. Shown in photo: AD and IDI signing the merger agreement. Bottom row L-R: Scott Simpson (President S.B. Simpson Group and IDI Board Member), Jack Templin (AD Industrial President & Chief Programs Officer). Top row L-R: Brad Harper (IDI VP Finance & Operations), Rob Dewar (IDI President), Drew Moyer (AD CFO), John Morrison (IDI VP of Supplier Relations).

This is AD’s ninth merger since the group’s founding and its fourth merger within Canada. AD completed mergers with Canadian electrical groups in 1993 and 2012, and a Canadian plumbing and heating group in 2016. AD Canadian members represent 20% of AD consolidated sales.

Coming on the heels of AD’s January 1, 2019 acquisition of the IDC-USA group, the IDI merger enhances the group’s private label and redistribution capabilities, reaffirms AD’s commitment to independent industrial distribution throughout North America, and reinforces the value of single industry groups coming together under the AD multi-industry umbrella.

“On behalf of the 100+ IDI members, we are proud to join this group of best-in-class independent distributors and supplier partners,” says Steve Drummond, Board Chairman of IDI and President of Source Atlantic. “The IDI members will now get the best of both worlds: programs and services we value from IDI, and the multi-divisional scale and infrastructure of AD.

“We are also very fortunate that AD has the resources and the experience to seamlessly accomplish a merger of this size. Source Atlantic has benefited from two AD mergers. We first joined the group when AD merged with our former electrical group, and then our former plumbing & heating group joined AD, so I speak from experience when I say that AD knows how to do mergers right.”

As a part of the merger, IDI President Rob Dewar will serve as president of AD Canada Industrial & Safety. “The programs that AD offers to help their members compete today and into the future cannot be replicated without the scale and program innovation that AD provides,” says Dewar. “A great example is the significant investment that AD continues to make in eCommerce; this investment is unparalleled and will be a true game changer for the new members of AD Canada Industrial & Safety.”

AD is the largest member owned contractor and industrial products wholesale buying/marketing group in North America. AD provides independent distributors and manufacturers of construction and industrial products with support and resources that accelerate growth. More than 600 independently owned members span 9 industries and 3 countries, with annual sales exceeding US$41 billion. AD-served industries include electrical, industrial, safety, plumbing, PVF, HVAC, building materials, bearings & power transmission and decorative brands. For more information, visit: www.adhq.com