Top 40 promotional products distributor Stran & Company (asi/337725) has inked a definitive agreement to acquire Gloucester, MA-based GAP Promotions (asi/199882) in an asset purchase transaction. GAP’s clients include household names in the beverage industry like Diageo, Molson Coors and Heineken.

Headquartered in Quincy, MA and ranked 32^nd on Counselor’s most recent list of promo’s largest distributorships, Stran went public in November, declaring at the time that strategic acquisitions would be part of its growth plan.

Andy Shape, president/CEO of Stran & Company, and Gayle Piraino, president/founder of GAP Promo, are excited about the new partnership.

Founded by Gayle Piraino in 2006 and profitable since its inception, GAP Promo is a distributorship that generated sales of $7.4 million in 2020.

The firm designs, sources and develops branded solutions for some of the world’s leading beverage and consumer packaged goods companies. Beyond Diageo and Molson Coors, those clients include Heineken, Samuel Adams, Moet Hennessy, Remy Martin, Yuengling and others.

Piraino, who has served as GAP president, will continue to lead GAP. Stran is also retaining all of GAP’s employees, executives said.

Andy Shape, president and CEO of Stran, said his firm has long-admired GAP’s design and execution of branded merch programs and custom displays. Shape believes that GAP’s portfolio of household name clients in the beverage and consumer packaged goods markets will be an ideal complement to Stran’s current business.

“We are excited to build upon (GAP’s) success and believe that through our combined offerings we can provide an even more compelling and comprehensive service offering for our customers,” Shape said. “Importantly, we expect this transaction to be highly accretive, given GAP Promo’s track record of profitability and the anticipated economies of scale.”

Piraino said that Stran’s focus on providing comprehensive solutions for customers will help GAP become more valuable to its clients. “We are thrilled to join the Stran family,” Piraino said. “Our two teams are well-aligned to continue the growth of our beverage and consumer packaged goods business.”

In business for about 25 years, Stran specializes in creating marketing programs involving promotional products/branded merchandise, as well incentive initiatives. Clients include Fortune 500 companies across a variety of industries, such as Coca-Cola. Wahlburgers and Harvard Business School are also clients.

Stran debuted on Counselor’s Top 40 list in 2021 based on 2020 North American promo revenue of $46.9 million. In December 2021, Stran shared that it raised about $42.4 million through an initial public offering on the NASDAQ and subsequent private placement of common stock and warrants.

Executives noted that the acquisition of GAP Promo is expected to close during the first quarter of 2022. It’s subject to customary closing conditions. Regarding financial terms, Shape told ASI Media that the “consideration consists of cash and equity of Stran stock at closing, a two-year fixed cash payment, and a two-year earn out based on performance.”