Corporate Interiors and The Invironmentalists Bran

St. Louis, MO, January 17--George Piccirilli and Linda Goldstein's chance conversation led to the whirlwind marriage of their companies: Corporate Interiors Inc. and the St. Louis branch of The Invironmentalists. The deal, which closed in just three and a half weeks, created CI Select Flooring Solutions, a $37 million office furniture and flooring supplier, according to the St. Louis Business Journal. Piccirilli, principal of CI, would not disclose the purchase price of The Invironmentalists but said the merger was completed Dec. 31 with the help of New York-based consulting firm Carl Marks. Piccirilli founded St. Louis-based Corporate Interiors, an office furniture company, in 1984. The company posted $26 million in revenue last year. The Invironmentalists is a flooring installation company with 2004 sales of $11 million. The former St. Louis branch of DuPont is no stranger to mergers. The company began as Anchor Floor under Goldstein's late father-in-law, Joe Goldstein. The company remained a family business until 1990 when it was sold to Man Commercial Carpet, at which time Linda Goldstein joined the business. Five years later, Invista, a division of DuPont bought the firm and renamed it The Invironmentalists. The firm was then sold to Koch Industries Inc. on April 1, 2004. Goldstein said she is excited to have the company locally owned again. "I think that it's important to be a part of the community you work in and support it. And I think that's much easier to do when your management team is located in that city." CI combines the complementing strengths of both companies. Corporate Interiors has a strong presence supplying furniture to the military, government and schools. Its clients include Scott Air Force Base, the downtown post office and Christian Brothers College High School. The Invironmentalists did 65 percent of its business in carpeting with clients such as BJC HealthCare, Lambert-St. Louis International Airport and Nestlé Corp. Piccirilli, who has known Goldstein for three years, said the two struck up a conversation during a networking event in December. They discussed the possibility of sharing warehouse space when, according to Piccirilli, Goldstein mentioned her firm was up for sale. "I threw it out on the table because I thought, 'Well it can't hurt,'" said Goldstein, former general manager of The Invironmentalists and current manager of CI's Flooring Division. "We were not on George's radar screen at all." After researching the idea, Piccirilli decided to pursue the deal. "Everything is a risk, but you take a calculated risk," he said. Corporate Interiors already held the No. 2 position for local office furniture companies, based on revenue. The merger strengthened the company's financial foothold and pushes them closer to the region's top office supplier, Color Art Integrated Interiors. Color Art posted $64 million in total sales in 2004. "Competition is competition," said Joe Steiner, president and chief executive of Color Art Integrated Interiors, a holding company. "Anytime you diversify into a complementary business it's a good move." Color Art, which has projections for breaking $100 million in sales by 2006 year-end, includes subsidiary companies such as Commercial Installation and Construction, an interior construction firm, and Recycled Office Interiors, an office furniture refurbishing company. Goldstein would not provide projections for 2005 but said plans are in the works to add to Corporate Interiors' existing facility at 1716 Hidden Creek Court with a completion date set for April. CI also is negotiating to buy a 50,000-square-foot warehouse in West County with the help of David Steinbach of Gundaker Commercial Real Estate. CI will integrate The Invironmentalists' 70 employees and Corporate Interiors' 55 employees with no layoffs planned, Piccirilli said. "Without the employees I have nothing."

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