Leatherman Tool Group, Inc. (LTG) has signed a definitive agreement to acquire the PocketToolX Company (PTX), a Seattle start-up that outgrew its capital resources when sales of its single-piece multi-tools caught on faster than expected. The deal will give Leatherman a jump start in a small, but rapidly emerging market it had already planned to enter.
Whitt Barnard of Sawtooth Capital Partners LLC in Boise, ID represented PTX in the transaction. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
PTX was created in 2009 by MK7 Designs, a Seattle product development and design consulting firm that also occasionally launches and develops consumer brands. In the case of PTX, success came faster than expected as cyclists, utility workers and outdoor enthusiasts embraced its minimalist designs. Last week, PTX’s website said its Brewzer Keychain, Mako Bike and Piranha and Piranha Ti pocket tools were sold out and that back orders could not be placed.
LTG was already planning on making a line of single-piece multi-tools when Sawtooth Capital called on the company to see if it might be interested in acquiring PTX, said Ben Rivera, the VP of business development and principal design engineer at LTG.
“One of the reasons we see a good fit for Leatherman is that PTX was constrained from growing by their cash position,” said Rivera. “Leatherman does not have that constraint. We plan to resume shipping the PTX Product on September 3.”
Going forward, the tools will be sold under the Leatherman brand and covered by its 25-year, no-questions-asked warranty. Production will remain entirely in the United States, where LTG and PTX shared vendors. Leatherman will exhibit the tools at the Outdoor Retailer show next month, when PTX founders Justin Knowles and D.J. MacLean will be on hand to talk about the line.
“We had a great time founding, running and promoting the PTX products,” said Knowles. “We wanted to find the right company to hand our creation to. One that we knew could take it to the next level and keeping the integrity of the brand and product engineering.”
Founded in 1983, Portland, OR-based LTG sells more than 100 million tools and lights annually to more than 1,000 dealers in more than 86 countries. Even so, the PTX acquisition adds dealers in the bicycle channel. It also opens up industrial and international opportunities in an emerging category with no dominant brands and minimal tooling costs.
