Since early November 2025, the industrial supplies distribution sector has seen a number of acquisition announcements. Below are a few examples:
- Shortly after finalizing the sale of its UK and Ireland operations to RUBIX, ERIKS announced on November 6, 2025 the signing of an agreement to acquire the activities of the German companies REIFF TECHNISCHE PRODUKTE GmbH and KREMER GmbH, specialists in power transmission and motion control, fluid technology, sealing solutions, as well as plastic and elastomer products.
- The following day, November 7, 2025, RUBIX announced the acquisition of KONRAD HALUK INDUSTRIEBEDARF GmbH, a German specialist in power transmission and motion control, with a strong presence in the machine building and mechanical engineering sectors.
- On December 9, 2025, HOFFMANN GROUP announced an agreement to acquire GÖDDE GmbH, GÖDDE Srl, OLTROGGE WERKZEUGE GmbH, HCH. PERSCHMANN GmbH, as well as the Polish company PERSCHMANN Sp. z o.o., all specialists in tools and industrial supplies distribution. These five companies had already been working in partnership with HOFFMANN GROUP since 1993.
- On December 12, 2025, ERIKS announced the acquisition of the French group SERIC TECHNOLOGIE, a specialist in industrial valves, control systems, instrumentation, and precision machining (Auteuil M&A Conseil advised ERIKS on this transaction).
- On December 17, 2025, RUBIX announced the acquisition of AIRFLUX, French compressed air specialist.
- Finally, on December 23, 2025, the restructuring plan of JOSEPH DRESSELHAUS GmbH & Co. KG was approved, opening the door to the strategic partnership between FABORY and DRESSELHAUS, two leading European specialists in fasteners and supply chain solutions.
While the reasons behind each of these transactions are, of course, specific, a few general observations can nevertheless be made:
- The major players in industrial supplies distribution are still, or once again, actively involved in M&A and continue to drive consolidation in the sector;
- German players remain actively sought after despite the current challenges affecting the German industry, and some companies now appear more receptive to approaches from European buyers than in the past—some weakened groups, moreover, have little choice;
- This wave of consolidation reflects the medium- to long-term confidence of major players in European industry, which should benefit from European and national recovery plans, as well as from planned investments in defense.
