Lockmasters Acquires JLM Wholesale

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Feb 06, 2024, 10:00 ET

NICHOLASVILLE, Ky., Feb. 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On January 31, 2024, Lockmasters, Inc. ("Lockmasters"), a portfolio company of Dominus Capital, L.P. ("Dominus"), acquired JLM Wholesale, Inc. ("JLM", the "Company"). JLM is a leading specialty wholesale distributor of commercial door hardware and security solutions. Selling primarily into the commercial glass and glazing market, JLM serves door and hardware distributors, security integrators, and glass and glazing contractors, providing technical solutions for products from industry-leading manufacturers. Headquartered in Oxford, MI, with further locations in Plano, TX and Charlotte, NC, JLM has grown substantially since its founding in 1984 by Janet Mirku.

Lockmasters is a leading provider of proprietary products, educational training and distribution of third-party combination locks, tools and hardware to the government and security professional industry. This acquisition marks the third add-on for Lockmasters under Dominus' ownership, and the most transformative thus far.

"We are excited to welcome JLM into the Lockmasters Family," said Joe McCormack, Lockmasters' CEO. "JLM has differentiated themselves in the market and is positioned for continued growth and success. The acquisition of JLM is aligned with Lockmasters' strategic priorities in several ways. First, it expands our distribution footprint with three additional locations, allowing each of us to serve our mutual customers faster and more efficiently. Second, JLM's comprehensive portfolio of commercial hardware and security products and solutions are complementary to and bolster what Lockmasters sells today. Finally, JLM accelerates our talent acquisition strategy with the addition of an experienced JLM team that is committed to providing the same level of exceptional service that we strive for at Lockmasters. We look forward to capturing the meaningful upside opportunities that lie ahead in partnership with the JLM team."

"My mother and my husband, Janet Mirku and Ray Baldwin, founded and built JLM. It will always have its roots in the Mirku and Baldwin families," said Annette Baldwin, the former CEO and majority owner of JLM prior to its sale to Lockmasters. "We were thoughtful about finding the right caretaker for JLM and believe it landed in the right hands with Lockmasters and Dominus. Their vision for JLM entails not only retaining all current employees and maintaining JLM's culture but growing and adding more staff, which is exactly what we had hoped for in the next owner."

"Lockmasters and JLM are very complementary businesses," said Jim Lee, President of JLM. "The combination with Lockmasters will strengthen relationships with our suppliers, where we have significant overlap today, and both deepen and expand our relationships across our similar door hardware and security customers. It will also enhance the reach of each business with our customers and increase shipping speed by expanding our distribution coverage with plans to further increase our national footprint together in the near future."

"The addition of JLM to Lockmasters is part of our buy and build strategy," said Bob Haswell, Founding Partner at Dominus Capital. "We are pleased to be chosen by the founders as the trusted caretaker of these leading businesses and look forward to assisting them with their next phase of growth. We are excited to work with JLM management to achieve similar success with Lockmasters."

About Lockmasters
Since 1955, Lockmasters has been providing the highest quality locks, tools, hardware & education to the government and security professional industry. It is the leading supplier of combination and safe deposit locks in the United States. But it is more than a lock company. Lockmasters offers extensive product lines and educational training to a range of security professionals including automotive, banking, commercial, government, industrial and safe. To better assist Lockmasters commercial and industrial security customers, the company began offering stand-alone access control and door hardware lines, which continue to grow.

Lockmasters is not only a distributor for the best lock and tool manufacturers in the country including ASSA Abloy, Allegion, Bullseye, HPC, dormakaba, Kaba Mas, ILCO, S&G, and Advanced Diagnostics, but it is also a manufacturer of a wide variety of tools & locks, including our Magnum Drill Rigs, Tech-Train Automotive Tools & our LockOne LKM10K High Security Life Safety Exit Devices. Lockmasters also has the premier educational facility in the security industry, providing training and certification to both new and experienced security professionals. Its world-class curriculum features hands-on learning taught by recognized authors, inventors, and industrial security professionals.

Lockmasters has the locks, tools, hardware, and educational training its customers need, but more importantly it has the experience to support the products and services it sells. Lockmasters is its customers' complete source for locks, tools, hardware, and education.

Lockmasters is headquartered in Nicholasville, KY with additional locations in Annapolis Junction, MD; Oxford, MI; Plano, TX; and Charlotte, NC. For more information, please visit www.lockmasters.com.

About Dominus Capital
Based in New York, Dominus Capital is a leading middle-market private equity investment firm that focuses on management-led buyouts and growth capital investments in the business services and light manufacturing sectors. Drawing on the experience, knowledge and network of its founders and a team of in-house operating executives, Dominus Capital works hand-in-hand with exceptional management teams to unlock the untapped potential of its portfolio companies. The firm takes a long-term, conservative approach to investing and has a consistent and successful track record of achieving significant growth at its portfolio companies. The Dominus Capital team members have executed over 95 transactions over the past 25+ years. For more information, please visit www.dominuscap.com.

SOURCE Dominus Capital, L.P.