Hopkins is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of branded products for the automotive aftermarket.
Investment
C$43 million
Fund
ONCAP III
Period
June 2011 - November 2023
ONCAP Team
Transaction Summary
ONCAP acquired majority ownership of Hopkins Manufacturing (“Hopkins”) in June 2011.
Business Description
Hopkins is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of branded products for the automotive aftermarket. Headquartered in Emporia, Kansas, the company manufactures and markets a diverse range of more than 5,000 SKUs across five primary product categories (Towing Electrical, Vehicle Accessories, Winter Care, Fluid Management and Automotive Cleaning) that are sold into almost every retailer of auto aftermarket products in North America (including in the auto retail, mass merchant, auto wholesale, e-commerce, warehouse club and other channels).
Accomplishment and Outcome
ONCAP was attracted to many of Hopkins’ attributes such as its multiple growth levers; market leading position in its core product categories; competitive advantages derived from market leadership and expertise in its categories, innovation, scale and strong customer relationships; excellent diversity by customer, product category, and SKU; and strong and stable free cash flow characteristics with low capex requirements. ONCAP, in partnership with the Hopkins management team, was able to create value at the company by executing and integrating 12 strategic acquisitions, which consolidated market share in core categories and added new categories, as well as expanded presence at existing customers and added new customers, while driving successful integration and significant synergies; increasing the depth of the management team, adding a new CFO, VP Sales, SVP Operations and several other roles throughout the organization; upgraded operational and IT infrastructure; augmented functional capabilities in sales, category management, eCommerce, supply chain and distribution capabilities; supported organic growth initiatives including major market share gains and new customer wins as well as eCommerce growth; and executed operational enhancement projects focused on customer service and delivery performance, as well as cost reduction across multiple verticals.
In November 2023, ONCAP completed the sale of Hopkins to a strategic acquiror.