On Monday, April 19, the world-renowned office furniture giant Herman Miller announced on its official website that it has reached a final agreement with another office furniture giant Knoll. Herman Miller will acquire its counterpart Knoll for US$1.8 billion and pay the method is cash plus stocks. The M&A transaction is expected to be completed before the end of the third quarter of this year.

After the transaction is completed, Herman Miller's original shareholders will hold 78% of the combined company, while Knoll's original shareholders will hold 22%.

It is understood that Herman Miller and Knoll have a total of 19 sub-brands, a total of 64 exhibition halls and more than 50 physical retail stores, with footprints in more than 100 countries around the world. As a leading brand in the global office furniture field, the merger of Herman Miller and Knoll is undoubtedly a move that shocked the industry, or will reshape the global office furniture market, and promote the transformation of the office furniture industry in the post-epidemic era.

According to Herman Miller's announcement, the combined company is expected to have annual revenue of 3.6 billion U.S. dollars and EBITDA profit (earnings before interest tax, depreciation and amortization) of 552 million U.S. dollars.

The announcement also mentioned that Herman Miller and Knoll are highly complementary in the office furniture industry. After the merger, the company will expand its business scope and improve its operating capabilities, and provide customers with better services in the engineering field, civilian and commercial furniture fields. At the same time, the interaction between architects and interior designers will be strengthened to help them make the best decisions for their clients. In addition, the combined company will continue to accelerate its digital transformation.

Herman Miller CEO Andy Irving posts

Herman Miller CEO Andi Owen said in his social media: "Today we are very pleased to announce the agreement with Knoll. Since the establishment of Herman Miller more than 100 years, we have been committed to creating a creative, innovative and collaborative office environment. Knoll shares this vision with us. We hope that after opening a new chapter with Knoll, we can work closely with the Knoll team to promote the deep integration of the two parties in terms of brand, technology, talent, and innovation. Build growth potential in a common cause in an all-round way."

After the announcement of the acquisition, Knoll's stock price rose by 28.7% in premarket trading, while Herman Miller's stock price fell by 13.1%.