Herman Miller to purchase Knoll Inc at $1.8 billion

Moving to take advantage of workplace renovations and restructurings as the pandemic eases, office furniture company Herman Miller Inc. will acquire rival Knoll Inc. for $1.8 billion.

In a statement, the companies said that the combination would help them feed into the transformation of home and office as work continues to be split between the two. The companies further stated that they see the merger generating $100 million of run-rate cost savings within two years of closing, which they expect by the end of the third quarter.

“As distributed working models become the new normal for companies, businesses are reimagining the office to foster collaboration, culture and focused work, while supporting a growing remote employee base,” Herman Miller Chief Executive Officer Andi Owen said in a statement on Monday. “At the same time, consumers are making significant investments in their homes.”

Knoll Chairman and CEO Andrew Cogan will step down when the transaction closes, and Owen will be president and CEO of the combined company.