Tilley-Phoenix Group

What Tilley-Phoenix Group does

Tilley-Phoenix Group, operating commercially as Tilley Distribution, is a specialty ingredients and chemical distribution platform headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, with additional operational offices in Brazil and the United Kingdom. The company distributes specialty ingredients, industrial chemical products, and premium-grade lubricants across ten distinct product lines serving regulated end-markets including food and beverage, pharmaceuticals and life sciences, personal care, flavor and fragrance, CASE (coatings, adhesives, sealants, elastomers), household industrial and institutional (HI&I) cleaning, animal nutrition, and lubricants (including authorized Mobil-branded products from Exxon Mobil). The platform is differentiated by an integrated portfolio of value-added services comprising custom blending, packaging, end-to-end supply chain management, research and development support, and quality and safety control with multiple industry certifications (SQF, Star-K, CCOF, FDA, ACD, Marinalg, IFAC, QAS International, Omni Chem).

The business model is B2B sales-led distribution with direct customer relationships, dedicated account management, and a customer login portal for ordering. Revenue is generated through three streams: ingredient distribution margins on product sales, service-based fees for custom blending, and managed services revenue from supply chain and packaging offerings. Pricing is quote-based and typical for B2B specialty ingredient distribution, with multi-year contracts supporting customer relationships in regulated markets requiring documented supplier qualification.

The platform was formed in December 2021 through the merger of SK Capital-backed Tilley Company with Phoenix Aromas and Essential Oils, building on Tilley Company's earlier September 2021 acquisition of Ingredients Solutions Incorporated (a hydrocolloids distributor) and followed by the January 2022 acquisition of Callahan Chemical Company. The company is privately held and controlled by SK Capital, with operating history dating to 1952 through the legacy Tilley Company entity.

Name

Tilley-Phoenix Group

Legal name

Tilley Distribution

Website

https://tilleycompany.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Tilley-Phoenix Group (operating as Tilley Distribution) is a PE-backed specialty ingredients distributor serving regulated markets including food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, personal care, and industrial sectors across the US, Brazil, and UK, with value-added custom blending and supply chain services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Baltimore

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Ingredient Distribution: Distribution of specialty ingredients, industrial chemical products, and premium-grade lubricants to various regulated markets. Revenue generated through product margin on ingredient sales across multiple industry verticals.
2. Custom Blending Services: Value-added custom blending services for customers requiring bespoke formulations. Service-based revenue complementing ingredient distribution.
3. Supply Chain Services: Integrated supply chain management services including packaging, logistics, and inventory management supporting ingredient distribution operations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

No detailed product or service description was available in the provided source content.

Product overview

Tilley Distribution is a specialty ingredients distributor offering a broad portfolio of chemical products across multiple regulated market segments. The company operates as a single unified distribution platform serving Food & Nutrition, Industrial, HI&I Care, Personal Care, Building & Construction, Printing & Packaging, Agriculture & Feed, Consumer Goods, Healthcare & Pharma, and Paints & Coatings markets. The product portfolio spans ten distinct product lines (Animal Nutrition, CASE, Excipients, Flavor & Fragrance, Food & Beverage, Household Industrial & Institutional, Hydrocolloids & Gums, Life Science/Pharmaceuticals, Lubricants, and Personal Care), complemented by five value-added service offerings (Custom Blending, Packaging, Supply Chain Services, Research & Development, and Quality & Safety Control). The company positions itself as more than a distributor, functioning as a committed partner in formulation development and supply chain solutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Segments8 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Callahan Chemical CompanycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 January 2022Tilley-Phoenix Group completed acquisition of Callahan Chemical Company, a regional distributor serving various regulated markets including food, personal care, pharmaceuticals, and coatings. The acquisition expands product offerings and market reach.
• Phoenix Aromas and Essential OilscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 December 2021Phoenix Aromas and Essential Oils merged with SK Capital-backed Tilley Company to form Tilley-Phoenix Group. The merger expands product offerings in the aroma and essential oils industry.
• Ingredients Solutions Incorporated (ISI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 September 2021Tilley Company acquired Ingredients Solutions Incorporated, a distributor of hydrocolloids. This was Tilley's first acquisition aligned with strategic growth plans to enhance portfolio and expand geographic access in North America.
• ACD (Association of Chemical Distributors)minorOthersIndustry group membership and certification - Tilley Distribution maintains membership in Association of Chemical Distributors
• Exxon MobilminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAuthorized distributor of Exxon Mobil lubricant products including Mobil-branded products for passenger automotive, industrial, and commercial applications.
• SQF (Safe Quality Food)minorOthersSQF certification for food safety and quality management systems - key certification for serving food and beverage customers
• Star-KminorOthersStar-K kosher certification - enables serving kosher food and ingredient customers in regulated markets
• CCOFminorOthersCCOF organic certification - supports organic ingredient distribution for customers requiring organic-certified inputs

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Aceto Corporation: US-based specialty ingredients distributor focused on human health, pharma, and specialty chemicals; comparable multi-vertical specialty distribution model with similar customer base.
• Barentz International: PE-backed (Cinven) specialty ingredients distributor serving food, personal care, pharma, and animal nutrition; identical sponsor-driven roll-up playbook and vertical mix to Tilley-Phoenix.
• Azelis Group: Brussels-headquartered specialty ingredients distributor serving food, personal care, pharma, CASE, and industrial customers with formulation labs and value-added services; highly comparable to Tilley-Phoenix on verticals, services, and target customer size.
• Hawkins, Inc. US-based specialty chemical distributor and blender serving food, pharma, water treatment, and industrial customers; comparable mid-scale distribution-plus-blending profile with similar vertical mix.
• ICC Chemical Corporation: Specialty chemicals and ingredients distributor covering flavors & fragrances, food, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals with global sourcing; directly comparable specialty distribution model.
• Caldic (now owned by Advent): Specialty ingredients distributor with food, personal care, and pharma verticals plus value-added formulation services; PE-backed specialty distribution peer with similar roll-up history.
• IMCD N.V. Amsterdam-listed specialty chemicals and ingredients distributor focused on formulation-driven end-markets (food, personal care, pharma, coatings); business model, supplier-principal approach, and value-added services closely mirror Tilley-Phoenix.

Broad incumbents

• Brenntag SE: Global market leader in chemical distribution with deep specialty ingredients exposure across food, pharma, personal care, and industrial end-markets; sets the scale benchmark against which sub-scale distributors like Tilley-Phoenix are measured.
• Univar Solutions: Largest North American specialty chemical and ingredient distributor with multi-vertical reach into food ingredients, pharma, personal care, and industrial chemicals — direct overlap with Tilley-Phoenix on almost every served market.

Regional players

• Spectrum Chemical Mfg. Corp. US-based specialty chemicals and ingredients distributor with strong pharmaceutical excipient and laboratory chemical focus; comparable distribution model with adjacent pharmaceutical and food-ingredient exposure.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tilleycompany

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A3 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Tilley-Phoenix Group