Building materials distribution giant spin-off reveals new name

A new multinational is formed: BME | Building Materials Europe

The sale of CRH Europe Distribution to Blackstone was completed on 31 October 2019 and the carveout from CRH has now been completed. The new Group is headquartered at Schiphol, The Netherlands and it has commenced a new chapter under the leadership of Remco Teulings, Group CEO of BME. The Supervisory Board will be chaired by Jean-Jacques Lafont.

Teulings states: “The formation of our group as it is today dates back to 1973 through the acquisition of Van Neerbos in The Netherlands, followed by numerous acquisitions over the past decades across multiple geographies, resulting in a group with revenues in excess of €3.7bn across 6 countries and employing close to 10,000 people. The decision of CRH to divest the Europe Distribution Division after almost half a century of ownership really marks the end of an era, and at the same time, it is the start of a new one for us. Our operating companies across the group will continue to trade under their wellknown local brand names, but together, we will now be BME Group. With the active support of our new shareholder – The Blackstone Group – our exciting journey to an accelerated profitable growth has started.”

Lafont comments: “I am very pleased to take on the role of Chairman of the Supervisory Board. Good progress was made in the last couple of months and BME is now operating fully independently. We have high ambitions for this business; supported by a group of talented people BME is on track to drive their organic and inorganic growth agenda. To realize our goal to become one of the leading European distributors of building materials, we will continue to focus on delivering on our promises towards all our stakeholders: our people, our customers, our suppliers and our shareholders.”

About BME | Building Materials Europe

Building Materials Europe, headquartered in the Netherlands, is the 3rd largest building materials distribution platform in continental Europe in terms of revenues, with national or regional leadership positions across The Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium and France. BME sells building materials to professional builders, specialist heating and plumbing installers and consumers through a large network of outlets operating under trusted brands. The Group is active in two main business areas: General Builders Merchants (GBM) and Sanitary, Heating and Plumbing (SHAP) with a small activity in DIY in Germany. Additionally, BME holds a 50% share in the number 2 DIY player in Portugal, named Maxmat. The BME group employs close to 10,000 FTEs working in more than 550 locations in 6 countries with sales revenue (2019) amounting to €3.7bn. Further information is available at www.bme-group.com.

About Blackstone

Blackstone is one of the world’s leading investment firms. They seek to create positive economic impact and long-term value for our investors, the companies in which they invest, and the communities in which they work. They do this by using extraordinary people and flexible capital to help companies solve problems. The businesses, with $512 billion in assets under management, include investment vehicles focused on private equity, real estate, public debt and equity, non-investment grade credit, real assets and secondary funds, all on a global basis. Further information is available at www.blackstone.com.