Platinum Equity Portfolio Company L&R Distributors Acquires SJ Creations

LOS ANGELES and BROOKLYN (March 4, 2022) – Platinum Equity portfolio company L&R Distributors announced today the acquisition of SJ Creations (“SJ”) from the company’s founders.  Financial terms were not disclosed.

Headquartered in Encinitas, California, SJ is a health, beauty and personal care products company focused on everyday and specialty bath, body and skin care products sold in major retailers under owned brands or private label.  The company has strong capabilities in design, marketing, sourcing and selling across a wide variety of product families and end-customers.

SJ Creations founders Sundi and Rich Yousko will remain involved with the business going forward.

L&R CEO Marc Bodner said SJ Creations is a great fit for L&R.

“Rich and Sundi have built an amazing business over the last 21 years,” said Mr. Bodner. “Working with L&R will help build on the company’s outstanding reputation for quality, service and a can do attitude, creating great potential for the combined business.”

SJ’s products are available across a broad range of retailers. L&R is a leading value-add distributor with deep access to the North American food, drug, and mass retail market.

“We are extremely appreciative of the opportunity to partner with both L&R and Platinum Equity to continue the SJ journey and reach new heights for our company,” said Mr. and Mrs. Yousko in a joint statement. “We are both proud of and thankful for our dedicated employees and business partners for everything SJ has accomplished. L&R brings with it tremendous scale and capabilities that we are excited to tap into in the near-term.”

Platinum Equity acquired L&R in July 2020.

“Platinum made a commitment to further invest in our business when we became partners during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic,” added Mr. Bodner  “Since that time, L&R has grown over 30%, we’ve greenfielded a new distribution facility in Reno, Nevada, invested in our team, and have now completed a highly complementary acquisition.”

“Marc and his team at L&R continue to impress with their leadership and  we have great faith in the company’s ability to execute on all the opportunties ahead of it,” added Platinum Equity Partner Jacob Kotzubei and Managing Director Nick Fries in a joint statement. “Bringing L&R and SJ together is a powerful combination for all involved.”

O’Melveny & Myers served as legal counsel to Platinum Equity and L&R on the transaction.  Auctus Law Partners LLP served as legal counsel to SJ Creations on the transaction.  PNC Bank served as administrative agent for the transaction.

The SJ Creations acquisition represents the 12th buy-side transaction Platinum Equity’s Small Cap team has completed in the last twelve months.

About L&R
Founded in 1956, L&R Distributors is a national distributor of over 25,000 cosmetics, health & beauty care, wellness & general merchandise products, presently serving over 14,000 retail locations. L&R services and distributes to Supermarkets (National, Regional and Independents), Drug (National, Regional, Independents), Spa clinics and Specialty retailers across the U.S.  L&R has developed a robust ecommerce platform that includes direct to consumer & blind drop ship fulfillment. L&R is passionate about designing the ultimate shopping experience for its customers, combining that passion with innovative thinking, best practices and the greatest technology to deliver higher sales for each one of its clients. To learn more about L&R or LR Fulfillment Solutions please visit www.lrdist.com.

About SJ Creations
Founded in 2001, SJ Creations designs, sources and sells health, beauty and personal care products to large retailers across the U.S.  SJ is based in Encinitas, CA and partners with domestic and internationally-based suppliers to design and produce unique and high quality products.  Today SJ sells a broad array of SKUs across branded and private label products.  To learn more about SJ please visit sjcreationsinc.com.

About Platinum Equity
Founded in 1995 by Tom Gores, Platinum Equity is a global investment firm with more than $25 billion of assets under management and a portfolio of approximately 50 operating companies that serve customers around the world. The firm is currently investing from Platinum Equity Capital Partners V, a $10 billion global buyout fund, and Platinum Equity Small Cap Fund, a $1.5 billion buyout fund focused on investment opportunities in the lower middle market. Platinum Equity specializes in mergers, acquisitions and operations – a trademarked strategy it calls M&A&O^® – acquiring and operating companies in a broad range of business markets, including manufacturing, distribution, transportation and logistics, equipment rental, metals services, media and entertainment, technology, telecommunications and other industries. Over the past 25 years Platinum Equity has completed more than 300 acquisitions.