Landscape M&A Update – October 2021

2021 has already proven to be a most amazing year in landscape industry mergers & acquisitions.   As we move into the fourth quarter, here is a recap of selected industry-wide transctions closed ir announced  so far in 2021, although we know that the year is not nearly over as there are many people racing to get deals closed before year-end in anticipation of potential tax changes, especially related to capital gains.

New Platform Investments

Here are selected new platform investiments in 2021 (click on each one for more information):

Incline Equity invested in Edko Vegetation Management

High Street Capital invested in Southern Design

Plexus Capital invested in Southern Shade Tree

Verde Companies acquired California’s Juniper Landcscape Co.

The Riverside Company acquired Clintar, a Canada-based outdoor services franchisor

Seacoast Capital and Galaxi Group invested in an alliance between CityLeaf and Medallion Landscape in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Broadtree Partners established a sweeping platform, West Sleeping, with two acquisitions, Contract Sweeping Sertvices and Staewide Sweeping in California.

There have been a handful of transactions involving the exit of a private equity investor:

APAX Funds agreed to acquire SavATree.

Outworx, a unit of Mill Pont Capital, acquired Gold Landscape from Trinity Private Equity Group.

KKR acquired Neighborly from Harvest Partners.  Neighborly is the franchisor of The Grounds Guys and 27 other franchu=ise brands.

Landscape Maintenance

The major consolidators, including BrightView, Yellowstone and Heartland have made multiple acquisitions.

BrightView acquired West Bay Landscaping in Tampa, Baytree Landscape Contractors in Atlanta, Birch Incorporated in St. Paul, Green Image LLC (GTI) in Las Vegas.

Yellowstone Landscaope Group partnered with Grass Groomers and Boren Brothers in Columbus.  Yellowstone also acquired Davis Landscape in Georgia, Green Pastures in Nashville and KCS Landscape in Northern Virginia.

Heartland acquired Roark Landscaping in Tulsa, VerdeGo Landscape in Bunnell, Florida, and Inside Out Services in Metro D.C.

Sperber Landscape acquired Cagwin & Dorward in Northern California.  In Wisconsin, Sperber’s Kujawa Enterprises unit acquired Landscape Associates of De Pere.

Schill Grounds Management acquired Ward + Thornton Landscapes in Southern Ohio, and Fredericks Landscaping in Cincinnati.  Schill also acquired the Commercial Division oif The Ohio Valley Group.

Piscataquay Landscaping and Tree Service acquired Jacqueline Nooney Landscape in Maine. Piscataqua is a unit of Chenmark.

Urban Life Solutioins acquired GrassChopper in Edmonton.

Hilton Head-based The Greenery acquired Martex Services on Amelia Island.

Minnesota-based Prescription Landscape acquired Peerless Lawn in St, Paul.

Elite Team Offices acquired Greenscapes Landscaping in Santa Barbara County, California.

Stratton & Bratt merged with Elite Grounds in Utah.

Landcare acquired Pacific Landscapes in California’s North Bay.

Lawncare

Senske Services acquired Colorado’s Fit TurfSenske also acquired the  Colorado operations of Experigreen and Sun Pest Management in Clarkston, Washington

The Green Group announced the acquisition  of Eastern Turf Maintenance in Raleigh and Loyalty Lawn in St.  LouisThe Green Group also acquired Lawn Tech in North Texas.

Michael Hatcher & Associates acquired Green King Spray Service in Olive Branch, Mississippi, and Your Choice Lawn & Turf in Collierville, Tennessee.

Experigreen acquired the Columbus customers of The Organic Turf Company and the lawn care business of Delhi Lawn Service in Cincinnati.  Experigreen also acquired Ultra-Green in Chicago and the residential customers of Green Turf in Detroit.

Tree Care 

SavATree acquired Arborwell in California, Giroud Tree and Lawn in Pennsylvania,  TREE-TECH in New Jersey, Branches Tree Experts in Metro DC. Advanced Arboriculture in Michgan, Glynn Tree Experts in Massachusetts Kaiser Tree Preservatioin Rhode Island Big Tree in Orion, Michigan

Bartlett Tree Experts acquired Westree in Santa Barbara, California.

The Davey Tree Expert Company acquired AJ’s Tree Service in Nashville and Chippers, Inc. in Vermont, the Utility Division of Seacoast Tree Care in New Hampshire and North American Tree Service in  Georgia.   Davey Resource Group acquired Outdoor Lab in St.Paul.

 

Facility Services

Sweeping Corporation of America acquired C&J Parking Lot Sweeping in Michigan.  SCA is a portfolio company of Warburg Pincus.

Pritchard Industries has acquired Global Industrial Services, a self-performing provider if janitorial, landscaping and snow removal services.

Landscape Supply

Heritage Landscape Supply acquired Atlantic Mulch, Davis Sales in Oklahoma,  Watson Supply in Harrisburg, PA., and Atlanta Landscape Materials

SiteOne acquired Green Brothers Earth Works and Southern Atlanta Supply in the Atlanta area, Arizona Stone and Solstice Stone in Arizona, and Lucky Landscape Supply in Katy, Texas

LOVING acquired Babcock Ranch Sod Farm.

Software and IT

LawnStarter acquired Lawn Love.

ServiceTitan acquired Aspire Software

LMN acquired Greenius

There have been multiple other transactions  involving all sectors of the industry, including landscape services, lawn care, tree care, vegetation management and facility services.

 

This information has been derived from publicly available sources.  There are a number of other transactions which have been completed but have not been announced.  This list is intended to be representative of the ndustry taken as a whole, not transactions in which Principium has played a role.  Even for transactions in which Principium played a role, the information is limted to publicly available information.