LONE TREE, CO - Consorcio Comex S.A de C.V. (Comex), reported to be Mexico's largest coatings manufacturer, will acquire Professional Paint Inc., the operator of a group of regional architectural-coatings companies in the western United States and Canada, under a merger agreement announced by Colorado-based Professional Paint.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Professional Paint is owned by the investment firm The Jordan Co. L.P.

Professional Paint, based in Lone Tree, CO, is the parent company of Frazee Paint, San Diego; Kwal Paint, Denver; Parker Paint, Tacoma, WA; Stellar Kwal Paint, Dallas; General Paint, Vancouver, British Columbia; Ideal Paint, Toronto; and Duckback Products, Chico, CA. Professional Paint said its annual revenue is approximately $500 million.

Comex, based in Mexico City, markets products through more than 3,000 stores in Mexico. The company operates four production plants and four distribution centers, and in addition to architectural coatings manufactures industrial and automotive coatings, roof coatings, wood-care products, and aerosols. The company's annual sales are approximately $520 million.

Kent Child, CEO of Professional Paint, said the merger "provides both companies with the synergies and impetus to achieve future growth objectives, and forms the base for a strong, international company." Adam E. Max, senior principal of The Jordan Co., said Child and his management team "have forged the regional brands of PPI into a formidable player in the U.S. and Canadian architectural coatings industry." The deal with Comex "will help management continue to build PPI's business," Max said.

Comex CEO Marcos Achar said "partnering with a proven company like PPI" would help Comex "create a company that can build significant share in the market from Canada to Panama." He said the two companies possess complementary strengths and strong management teams, and will partner to form a "combined business that is much, much more than the sum of its parts."