Blue River Advises Grommet On Sale To GiddyUp

October 18, 2022 – Blue River Financial Group has advised Grommet, online consumer retailer and portfolio company of ACE Hardware, on its recent sale to GiddyUp. Grommet kept its retail store closed and launched a free email newsletter that shines a spotlight on innovative, never seen before products and the inventors and stories behind them. The newsletter unlocks exclusive discounts for Grommet readers.

Since 2008, Grommet has launched over 3,000 products from small businesses and emerging entrepreneurs, building a community of over 4 million loyal customers. Its innovative online platform and comprehensive process for curating new-to-market industry-leading consumer products have changed how consumers find and buy products online from small businesses and emerging entrepreneurs. Grommet’s success was driven by a commitment to curating high-quality and innovative products and enabling it through a frictionless online retail experience that makes product discovery and product purchase easy.

Grommet was acquired by Ace Hardware corporation in 2017 and maintained their startup culture and mission of finding innovative products, while helping to deliver qualified products to many of Ace Hardware’s 10,000 stores. Ace Hardware is the largest retailer-owned hardware cooperative in the world with more than 5,200 locally owned and operated hardware stores in approximately 70 countries. Headquartered in Oak Brook, Ill., Ace and its subsidiaries operate an expansive network of distribution centers in the U.S. and have distribution capabilities in Ningbo, China; Colon, Panama; and Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

GiddyUp is a partner marketing network and performance platform, transforming commerce into a decentralized and democratized ecosystem. GiddyUp helps brands and marketing partners generate scalable, long-term revenue through performance-based partnerships and cutting-edge technology.

“We’ve been huge fans of Grommet since they opened in 2008. Their passion and expertise for discovering and championing innovative products from small businesses is unmatched. They’ve helped millions of shoppers who don’t want to settle for inferior products,” said Topher Grant, GiddyUp CEO. “When we learned that Grommet was at risk of going away forever, we knew we couldn’t let that happen. We worked with Ace Hardware to acquire the brand to ensure they can live on for decades to come.”

“The Blue River team is excited to be a part of bringing two great cutting-edge businesses together. Whenever both businesses see the potential benefits of the combined organization, it makes for a smoother transaction. We are thankful to have such strong clients and partners to work with,” said Thomas Hagan, Managing Director of Blue River’s Sell Side division.

Contact

Thomas Hagan
Managing Director
thagan@goblueriver.com

About Blue River

Blue River Financial Group is a middle market merger and acquisition advisory firm headquartered in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. It assists corporations, private equity groups and individuals in the sale and acquisition of businesses, and has completed assignments in multiple business segments. With over 20 years of experience spanning across 50 global industries, Blue River provides a suite of services to middle market clients including corporate development, private equity support, valuations and transaction consulting, placing a premium on relationship-centered transaction counsel and client focus.

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