Michael Hatcher & Associates, a Memohus area landscape services provider has acquired Green King Spray Services of Olive Branch, Mississippi. Green King will operate as aunit oif Michael Hatcher’s Master Lawn division focuses on fertilization and weed control services.
According to the memphis Business Journal, Greg Drumwright, founder of Green King, said he was approached by six different firms about acquiring his company, but held out for a deal with Michael Hatcher & Associates.
Green King’s assets and equipment, plus staff and customers will be a oart of the Master Lawn division. MH&A will operate Green King’s Olive Branch location as a branch office for Master Lawn.
Master Lawn and Green King competed in a similar geographic region — throughout the Memphis metro area, as well as in DeSoto, Marshall, and Tate counties in Northern Mississippi.
“It’s easy to say Michael Hatcher is our acquirer of choice,” Drumwright said, “I’ve known that team for 20 years and I believe in their dedication to our local community, employees, and customers. The Master Lawn and MH&A leadership teams are first class and set themselves apart by treating people the right way. This builds trustworthy relationships with customers and the community.”
According to MH&A, the Green King brand will stay in use with existing customers. No staff reductions resulted in the acquisition, as Green King’s 22 employees joined Master Lawn’s existing 23 employees to bring Master Lawn up to 45 staff.
Michael Hatcher, president and CEO of MH&A, noted that the company has an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) and that all incoming employees now have ownership options in his firm.
Russ Sneed, COO of MH&A, said the acquisition brings Master Lawn up to nearly 10,000 customers in the Memphis metro market. With Green King, Master Lawn has expanded its presence to Mississippi’s Lafayette and Tishomingo counties.
Green King was also MH&A’s fourth acquisition within its lawn care division. In March 2021, the company acquired Your Choice Lawn & Turf; Mid-South Turf in February 2020; and Master Lawn in 2018.
In terms of revenue, Sneed said the Green King acquisition put MH&A in the category of one of the largest landscape companies in the country.
“We can’t address specifics but this put us in the $20 million and above range,” Sneed said. “But everything we are doing isn’t just growing to get bigger. The growth is to fuel more investment into our infrastructure to support our team and to support the quality of our service to the customers.”
Founded in 1986, Michael Hatcher & Associates, is located on a 22-acre campus at 8365 Center Hill Road in Olive Branch. MH&A services also include commercial landscape maintenance, residential landscaping care, and landscape design and construction. MH&A employs about 150 people in total.