Henry Schein to acquire full-service dental distributor Marrodent

Acquisition marks company's entry into Poland's dental market

Henry Schein Inc. (Melville, New York; Nasdaq: HSIC), the world's largest provider of health-care products and services to office-based dental, animal health, and medical practitioners, announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire an 80% ownership position in Marrodent, one of Poland's largest full-service dental distributors. Marrodent's 2015 sales totaled approximately $32 million. Henry Schein has served animal health customers in Poland since 2014, and Marrodent will mark the company's entry into Poland's dental market.

The transaction is subject to approval by Poland's competition authorities and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2016. Financial terms were not disclosed.

"We are delighted to enter Poland's dental market through Marrodent and we see considerable opportunity to expand this business among the country's approximately 26,000 practicing dentists and approximately 20,000 dental offices," said Stanley M. Bergman, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Henry Schein. "We look forward to working together and serving the Polish dental community with the same high standards and commitment to efficiency and success that customers throughout the world have come to expect from Henry Schein."

Founded in 1990 by brothers Roman and Marek Stekla and with headquarters in Bielsko-Biala and a facility in Warsaw, Marrodent distributes dental consumables and equipment as well as dental laboratory supplies and equipment. With nearly 60 sales representatives and a call center, Marrodent serves approximately 10,000 office-based dental practitioners across Poland. Roman and Marek Stekla will own the remaining 20 percent of Marrodent, and along with CEO Artur Podolski, will join Henry Schein.

"We are very pleased to partner with Henry Schein, a global leader in oral health and a company whose commitment to being a valued resource for innovative solutions across the spectrum of products, services, and technology we share," said Roman Stekla.

"With the demand for dental services growing rapidly in Poland, our partnership with Henry Schein will expand our mutual efforts to focus on practice care so dental professionals can focus on patient care," added Marek Stekla.

With the addition of Marrodent, Henry Schein's dental business will have operations or affiliates in 27 countries. In 2015, Henry Schein reported global dental sales of $5.3 billion.

Headquartered in Melville, New York, Henry Schein has business operations or affiliates in 33 countries. The company's sales reached a record $10.6 billion in 2015 and have grown at a compound annual rate of approximately 15% since Henry Schein became a public company in 1995.

Source: Henry Schein press release 30 August 2016