Smith Anderson Represents General Parts International in $2.04 Billion Merger with Advance Auto Parts

RALEIGH, N.C. – Smith Anderson is pleased to have served as lead counsel to General Parts International in its merger with Advanced Auto Parts in a transaction valued at $2.04 billion, making it one of the largest transactions in North Carolina history.  

Headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina, and founded in 1962 by Chairman O. Temple Sloan Jr., General Parts International includes 38 distribution centers, 1,246 company operated stores across the U.S. and Canada, and 1,418 independently owned CARQUEST locations. It also operates WORLDPAC, a leading importer and distributor of original equipment and quality aftermarket replacement automotive parts to import specialists in North America and Puerto Rico operating four main distribution centers and 102 facilities across the U.S. and Canada. The merger with Advanced Auto Parts, which closed on January 2, 2014, creates the largest automotive aftermarket parts provider in North America, with combined sales of over $9.3 billion and more than 70,000 employees.

Members of Smith Anderson’s Mergers and Acquisition practice group counseled General Parts throughout the transaction with Advance Auto Parts. Under the leadership of the Firm’s Chairman John Jernigan, Smith Anderson’s team of lawyers included partners Byron Kirkland, Martin Brinkley,  David Clement, and Caryn McNeill, among others.

O. Temple Sloan III, president of General Parts International, said, “This was one of the most significant events in the history of our company, and Smith Anderson was a critical part of our team throughout the process. They consistently demonstrated the expertise, judgment and responsiveness we needed to complete a complex transaction successfully.” 

John Jernigan, who led the firm’s legal team, said, “We are pleased to have represented the Sloan family and General Parts in this merger.  We appreciate their trust and confidence in permitting us to advise them during a transaction of such significance not only for them but for our state.”

For more information on the transaction and to read a press release on the Advance Auto Parts website, please CLICK HERE.

About Smith Anderson’s Mergers and Acquisitions Practice

Smith Anderson’s Mergers and Acquisitions practice group is one of only three in North Carolina to be ranked “Band 1” by Chambers USA: America's Leading Business Lawyers, the highly-regarded publication’s best ranking. Additionally, we have more Mergers and Acquisitions lawyers individually ranked by this publication than any other practice in the state.  For more information on our Mergers and Acquisitions practice, please visit www.SmithLaw.com/mergersandacquisitions.