Mississippi-based distributor TSC, doing business as The Specialty Company (PPAI 134317, D5), acquired Missouri-headquartered DVL Enterprises, doing business as MPGTandem (PPAI 102494, D7). The acquisition was announced in the final days of 2022 and is the third company that TSC has acquired in recent years.

The Deal

  • TSC, a multi-faceted promotional products distributorship focusing on branded items for company clients, will now acquire MPGTandem’s offerings as a wholesaler and retailer of corporate apparel, employee image apparel, workwear, scrubs and employee recognition awards.
  • The acquisition combines the talent pool of TSC and MPGTandem while also bringing MPGTandem’s customer base into TSC’s fold.
  • The DVL Enterprises employees will be retained by TSC, and the DVL Enterprises locations in Illinois and Missouri will remain operational.
  • Dave LaRusso, founder of DVL Enterprises, will also remain on, serving the role of vice president of special projects.

Continued Expansion

TSC’s southern roots have continued to expand with this acquisition. The Specialty Company already has locations in Mississippi, Texas and Pennsylvania.   

  • By bringing MPGTandem under its umbrella, TSC has now expanded its regional footprint to St. Louis and Chicago.
  • This marks TSC’s third acquisition in recent years. In 2021, TSC, Inc. acquired Ice Blue Advertising as well as Lasting Image Promotional Products, Inc.
  • TSC was founded in 1991 and currently offers in-house warehousing and third-party logistics services, in-house decoration and proprietary webstore technology.

What They’re Saying

DVL Enterprises Founder Dave LaRusso says the resources TSC can provide for MPGTandem will not only increase the company’s levels of sales and growth but also provide more economic security for the employees.

“MPG realized the need to offer greater and improved services to our clients in the areas of third-party logistics, fulfillment services and custom manufacturing,” Russo says. “This will not only greater enhance those capabilities but also allow us to invest resources in all of the services we provide to our clients.”

For TSC’s part, CEO Sam Riden says those MPGTandem employees, as much as the expanded customer base, were a primary motivation for acquiring the distributor.

“They are gritty, adaptable and desire to be better tomorrow than today,” Riden says. “The acquisition of MPG will significantly add to our services. Using our collective strengths allows us to better serve both TSC and MPG clients.”