Veto Pro Pac, maker of premium multi-pocketed tool bags, pouches, and accessories, and now consumer travel bags, announced today that they will “join” the “Malco Group Portfolio of leading HVACR brands.”
Malco Tools was bought out by Aspen Pumps several months ago. (See Malco Tools is Under New Ownership)
Aspen Pumps is owned by Inflexion, a private equity firm.
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And now, the Veto Pro Pac tool bag brand has been folded into the mix.
Here’s what Inflexion says about Aspen Pumps:
In 2007 Inflexion led a buyout of Aspen Pumps and supported its growth, particularly in India and China. Inflexion generated a 22x return on its 2015 sale before re-investing in 2020.
So while officially Veto Pro Pac is being “brought into the Malco Group’s family of pro-favorite brands,” my understanding is that Veto Pro Pac was essentially sold to the same private equity firm as Malco.
According to the announcement:
This acquisition will allow Veto to expand the brand’s global reach while unlocking new opportunities in international markets.
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They also say:
We are excited to build upon Veto’s reputation in Europe and expand its presence across the region. This is a great step forward in aligning world-class brands with localized customer support.
The head of the Malco Group, within Aspen Pumps from within Inflexion’s investment portfolio, said:
This acquisition not only enhances the solutions we offer to our customers but also reinforces our leadership position in the industry.
Also:
Together, we can bring even more value to the professionals who rely on our products while creating new growth opportunities for our distribution partners worldwide.
Having seen what happened and being burned quite a bit by brands and companies that dropped quality and customer service after being sold to private equity and investment firms, I’m not optimistic about this news.
Maybe things will be different with Veto under private equity and investment firm ownership.
Veto is no longer the only option out there for highly organized tool bags. See: Milwaukee Packout Structured Tool Bag Expansion
S
Don’t worry lobsters! I’m here to protect you! As a sign of good faith, I even made a nice warm bath for you!
Chris
😂😂😂
eddiesky
Queue up the muppets episode with Swedish Chef and the lobsters…
James
We’ve got about 20 veto bags. I’m very disappointed with this. There’s no way the level of service is maintained.
Josh
When PE buys a brand it’s only a matter of months before it’s gutted
Eric
Not always, Veto doesn’t seem to have a lot of hard assets to sell off. The value is in the companies reputation. So I expect they’ll spend the next few years cranking up the enshitification and make their money that way.
Josh
I bet you’re right.
D3t
On the other hand, they could cut material quality to maximize profit. It’s like Yeti buying Mystery Ranch. Their intentions will take a while to show up.
Eric
That’s what enshitification is. It’s become the blanket term for companies reducing the quality or quantity of products to make more money. Usually while making every effort possible to hide it.
Charles
Veto Pro Pac will continue to run their business as they do now. The quality of the product remain intact and just be able to expand its markets beyond where can reach as they were. With Aspen Pump Group they will use their network to expand further in the European market. And with Malco, Veto Pro Pac will add additional value to those customer as they collaborate, combining Malco tools with Veto.
Just wait, more to come with Malco Tools and Veto Pro PAC for the HVAC/R contractor.
Stuart
Isn’t that something the corporate folks would tell everyone whether they meant it or not? Time will tell.
ITCD
People say this like it’s an absolute with no other outcome even being remotely possible but I’m looking at a few million dollars in new investments in capital equipment with another one arriving next week that says, once in a blue moon it isn’t true. Here’s to hoping for a blue moon.
Crow
Capitalism is on it’s way to destroying another awesome product. Shareholders demand endless growth and the consumers pay the price. Well, it was cool while it lasted at least.
Philip+Proctor
Capitalism created it
Josh
Exactly. The other option have us the yugo and ural lol
Chris
People are so quick to blame capitalism for everything. But we wouldn’t have anything as a country without it. Yes it does have its cons, pretty major ones actually. If we could fix the greed we would be perfect.
Al
It is not capitalism as whole..I think the problem is unregulated private equity that’s why we see acquisitions and bankruptcies later ..they make their money that way by cannibalizing assets from failing or profitable companies they are not interested in developing the Brands… What we get in return is Temu crap products
Stuart
And the problem with that is not the goal of developing brands, but the goal to improve value with the intent to sell.
If the goal is to generate appeal for corporate buyers, actions and direction tend to supersede those that would generate value and appeal for end users.
B2B becomes the primary focus rather than B2C.
Other times, the goal is to improve short term profitability, and that also tends to trample things that have generated value for customers.
There are exceptions where the end user continues to come first.
Jason
This.
James
It’s the countdown to 10 corporations……..
Jerry
Veto had a great reputation will this company be able to maytain this
Spearhead91
Veto has not been the “only” option for quite some time. I’ve been carrying a Velocity Pro Gear Bag for years.
https://velocityprogear.us/
James
Thanks!!
Aaron Lipner
It could also be that their business has been slow or going downhill and had to either sell or close.
Hopefully they can grow without sacrificing what made them great.
Stuart
Or the owner wanted to retire with a lump sum. I didn’t see any quotes or messages from them in the announcement.
Eric
It was owned by one guy who seems to be near retirement age. Their history page said he was a carpenter for 25 years before he started the company 24 years ago. So he’s in his mid 60’s if not older. So it makes sense to cash out if he’s ready to retire and doesn’t want to leave the company to a relative.
eddiesky
I get that. You create a brand, you put heart and mind into it, you give the trades what they need. Eventually, time to say, ok, I am seeing family and friends retire and travel or relax. Quality of life. Let someone else take the reigns. No one will but money talks so… might even had to sign NDA/NonCompete and such. Dunno if Veto was publicly traded but .. sometimes you walk away, take the money. Don’t get emotional or attached. If the next one (Malco) effs it up, you still did ok.
I wanna a test shoot of other comparables. (Thanks for link to Velocity Pro). Comparison to Milwaukee and others. My Milwaukee bag is long in tooth, loops pull right off. I need a solid, enclosed Go To Bag for drivers, pliers, measuring tape, electrical tools and screwgun.
Jeff
Get your American made Veto bags now, because by his time next year, it will most likely have a Made in ______________ (fill in the blank) tag on the bags.
Many of these “Private Equity Groups” are ruining many of the brands we grew up with. When your company’s motto goes from “make great products the customers will love” to “make a high return on our investments, quality be damned” that’s when you you have lost and should just close up shop.
Eric
According to their website: “The majority of Veto Pro Pac bags are made in either China or Myanmar at top notch factories.”
Looks like they only make 2 drill holsters and a small tool roll for multi-meter leads in the USA.
Jim Felt
I doubt the infrastructure let alone “reasonable” labor availability in NA is likely to ever return.
Even Intel itself is facing layoffs. Their most recent multibillion dollar upgrades haven’t spared them from the digital future of AI let alone Apple, Google and Meta.
Stuart
Veto gave up on media relations years ago, and so I haven’t seen any of the newer products, but even the older ones were imported.
The construction was fine. Frankly, USA sourcing would be nice, but I think it would have only upped the price.
There are some USA-made options out there. e.g. https://14cyiuhvcgv.com/channellock-tool-bags-launch/%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E
Jim Felt
I remember first seeing a mention of Veto 20 some years ago in perhaps Fine Homebuilding. Instead of a letter I found their direct number and the guy that answered was both the inventor and the owner.
Great conversation and I’m pretty sure I had one of their first bags in the Pacific Northwest.
Called him back a few times too. (How quaint that seems).
I’ve others now, of course, but that original bag is still in use.
Joe
Everything now a days is made in china. So as long as the quality and warranty is legit. I don’t mind. Malco has also made quality tools in the hvac-r industry which I cook with. Never had any negative feedback in the field and always performed to my standards.
Jeff
Do you not mind that you don’t really have a choice? We mostly say that we don’t mind our products being made in China, but if given the choice, wouldn’t you rather more of your money stay in your own country? In your own community? I buy stuff made in China because there really isn’t much choice. I do buy American when I can, but that option keeps getting smaller every day.
Stuart
Actions speak louder than words. Many people express a preference for USA-made products, but undeniably many if not most people prefer lower pricing over all other factors.
Scotty.
Always wanted a Veto bag but couldn’t justify the cost as I wasn’t an everyday tradie. Sad to see this quality brand sold to PE. My opinion, best case is probably a slow swirl down crapper. Worst case they will be loaded with debt and forced into bankruptcy in short order like Joann Fabrics. The brand will be sold to some foreign company and the products won’t be any different than any other bag sold in big box stores.
Get your Veto bags now, before the inevitable decline of quality.
Tony
Maybe it’s just me but I already considered this to be a crowded market.
Some of the Milwaukee Structured Packout Tool bags are already close to $300. Klein, ToughBuilt, and others have also produced more expensive products. I’m not saying that all of these are of the same quality/uniqueness as what Veto provides. But over time, sometimes “good enough” becomes the deciding factor for making a purchase.
Having said that, I also hate to see Veto get bought out.
Nicholas Ranella
The veto brand will fall just like how they ruined Eagle Grip.
Hopefully Malco learned from all the angry folks, but I’m skeptical.
Stuart
Eagle Grip was a valiant effort.
fred
I agree! Too bad there was no groundswell of consumer demand for refined high-quality USA-made locking pliers. I never saw a pair in the wild – and seemed to only have a chance to buy them when they were already discontinued. I’m guessing that the tool buyers at HD etc. may have choked on the MSRP and margins – so Malco never got off the ground with them. One has to wonder if this venture contributed to Malco’s decline and decision to be bought out.
Stuart
The high price was an early concern of mine. As I rationalized it, some users might buy one or two, but heavy users such as welders were likely to seek out more economical brands.
And, as I understand it, the costs piled on, partially due to the pandemic, but also because the true costs of what they had set out to do was unexpectedly much greater than Malco anticipated.
They also had very bad luck with influencer marketing firms that, from my interactions, I’d say were inexperienced and ineffectual.
ITCD
I feel like they may have also been a bit early on their announcement. When was it, 2017 or thereabouts that they announced the comeback? It ended up taking until like 2020 for them to even hit the market. What buzz was there YEARS prior was probably forgotten as vaporware by at least some by that point, and then the price point made it worse.
eddiesky
I needed a new bag. I wanted the Veto Pro model that was in Blackout or the Infrared model, however too small or too big, but now I decided for another brand, the Milwaukee 48-22-8316. Seems Acme has a deal on it for $53 off (Was $270, Now $216). Does what I need, as the current Milwaukee bag I have is too full, no enclosure, and pieces coming off.
Nothing like having a loaded open bag, then having it dump on the floor of the truck. No more!
Calvin A Watkins
Take overs are not good. Instead of being a part of a family, you’re now just a number.
ElectroAtletico
My Husky tote bags cost around $50, last on avg 4 years, and nobody steals Husky bags.
Im way ahead of this curve!
vue yang
Velocity Pro Gear is an up and coming Veto Pro Pac Contender. They’re essentially the British version. They make GREAT looking bags. Their lineup is small though. Velocity have features that I wish Veto have. Like magnetic fidlock straps, dedicated hidden pocket for trackers, velcro straps, truck tarp liners.
Daniel L
Whelp.
Gonna have to make my current bags last.
Bruce
I’ve had a Milwaukee backpack tool bag for years. I hate it. Plus it’s durable so it won’t die. It sags forward and falls over. If it’s in the back of the truck it often falls over and dumps all the tools out of their slots. Super annoying.
Two weeks ago I said enough and bought a Veto pack. It’s better in every way, the center spine keeps the bag from flopping over so. The pockets are better designed for holding the tools. Looks like I bought just in time.