Herman Miller to buy Knoll for US$1.8b in workplace bet

[MICHIGAN] Office-furniture company Herman Miller agreed to acquire rival Knoll for US$1.8 billion, moving to take advantage of workplace renovations and restructurings as the pandemic eases.

The companies said the combination would help them feed into the transformation of home and office as work continues to be split between the two.

"As distributed working models become the new normal for companies, businesses are reimagining the office to foster collaboration, culture and focused work, while supporting a growing remote employee base," Herman Miller chief executive officer Andi Owen said in a statement Monday. "At the same time, consumers are making significant investments in their homes." Knoll shareholders will receive US$11 in cash and 0.32 of a Herman Miller share for each Knoll share, or US$24.18 a share based on Herman Miller's April 16 closing price. Knoll Chairman and CEO Andrew Cogan will step down when the transaction closes, and Mr Owen will be president and CEO of the combined company.

The companies said they see the merger generating US$100 million of run-rate cost savings within two years of closing, which they expect by the end of the third quarter.

BLOOMBERG