Lexbury › Sectors › Wholesale distribution

Your supplier lines and loyal accounts took decades to build.

A distributor's real value isn't the warehouse or the stock. It's the relationships on both sides of it. If you own an established Alberta distribution business and you're ready to step away, we'll buy it directly, keep your team, and close in under six months.

Private · No obligation · No one calls unless you ask.
What we buy

Wholesale distribution businesses we're looking for.

Established Alberta distributors with $2M+ in revenue, a warehouse team and repeat customers. Industrial, trade, building, food and specialty lines are all of interest.

Industrial & MRO supplyParts, consumables and maintenance supplies
Building & construction productsMaterials, fasteners and specialty products
Electrical & plumbing supplyTrade counters and contractor accounts
Automotive & heavy-duty partsFleet, shop and aftermarket supply
Food & foodserviceSpecialty and regional distribution
Agricultural supplyInputs, equipment parts and farm supply
What drives value

What we pay for, and what holds a price back.

We'd rather tell you up front than surprise you at the offer. Here's how we look at a distribution business.

Adds value

Supplier agreements in writingPreferred or exclusive lines, backed by agreements that survive a change of owner.
A broad, loyal customer baseRepeat buyers across many accounts, ordering because it's easier than switching.
A team that runs the warehousePurchasing, inside sales and logistics that work without you in the building.
Systems you can trustInventory and order data that's clean enough to run the business on.

Can hold it back

One supplier dominatesIf a single line can walk, a large part of the value can walk with it.
Relationships held by you aloneKey suppliers and accounts who only ever deal with the owner are harder to transfer.
Slow-moving or obsolete stockInventory that hasn't turned is counted at what it's really worth, and we'll say so early.
Thin margins on commodity linesPrice-only customers leave for a cheaper quote. Value-added lines hold up better.

None of these is a deal-breaker. Most owners have at least one. We'll tell you which apply to your business, and what they mean for the price, before you commit to anything.

A relevant deal

Our founder has done this before.

Mike Cook, who founded the Lexbury Group, led this deal. It's the same way we'd approach yours.

Industrial logistics · Calgary · est. 1975

A handshake deal, and a second bite at the apple

An established industrial and commercial logistics business. The owner and Mike agreed terms in two meetings. The owner kept 30% to keep growing the business, and that second bite turned out to be bigger than the first.

107 daysLOI to closing
All staffkept
Try it

How much depends on one supplier?

Roughly what share of your sales comes from your single largest supplier's products? It's a rough guide, not a valuation. Nothing is saved or sent.

Your largest supplier's share of sales

Drag to your best guess.

largest supplier everyone else
Wholesale distribution owners ask

The questions specific to your business.

Will my suppliers keep us on as a distributor?

We look at your agreements during the confidential review, and plan how and when each key supplier hears about the change, with you.

How do you handle inventory?

It's part of the valuation. We count it together and value it at what it's really worth. Slow-moving stock is discussed openly up front, not argued about at closing.

Will my team stay?

That's our plan. We keep teams intact; the people who know the customers and the stock are a large part of what we're buying. When the deal closes, we usually announce it together at a company meeting.

Will my key stakeholders find out?

Not until you're ready. The visit is arranged so we look like a client, supplier or advisor, and your financials stay under NDA. Where a key supplier or major customer is essential to the business, we may need to speak with them before closing to make sure the relationship carries over. That happens late, only with your agreement, and usually with you in the room. Everyone else hears when you decide.

Same six steps. Under six months.

One conversation, a discreet visit, a confidential review, a fair offer, the paperwork, and closing.

1 · Conversation2 · Visit3 · Review4 · Offer5 · Paperwork6 · Close
61–107 daysLOI to closing, in the four deals
Mike shares on our home page

See how soon you could close.

Seven questions, two minutes, completely private. You'll see where you stand and the date you could be closed by. If a quick exit isn't right for your distribution business, we'll tell you.

Take the 2-minute check   Call Mike · 403-681-5378 Or email cook@lexbury.com. Every enquiry gets a personal reply.
Our other focus sectors: Specialty industrial services