Yellowstone’s Bio Expands in Dallas with Add-on Acquisition

Gridiron Capital, LLC announced the acquisition of Forest Hills Lawn Service, Inc. (Forest Hills) by its portfolio company, Yellowstone Landscape Group, Inc. (Yellowstone) on July 13, 2010. Based in Dallas, TX, Forest Hills provides landscape maintenance services primarily focused on municipal and governmental accounts. Forest Hills will become part of BIO Landscape & Maintenance, Inc. (BIO), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Yellowstone.

With the acquisition of Forest Hills, BIO now serves 21 counties with a combined workforce of over 500 professionals throughout Texas. The transaction marks the third addition to BIO over the last year. In October of 2009, BIO acquired Outdoor Environments, LLC, a Houston based commercial landscape maintenance company. In December of 2009, BIO acquired Texas Services, Ltd., a sustainable tree care focused lawn maintenance and landscape company in Houston. In May of 2010, BIO officially opened a maintenance branch in Beaumont and today operates multiple branches throughout the state of Texas.

Robert Taylor, President of BIO, commented, “BIO’s geographic footprint in Texas continues to grow rapidly. We felt that the next strategic branch for BIO should be in Northeast Texas. BIO’s maintenance division has been hard at work winning prestigious accounts in the Dallas area, so when we learned of the acquisition opportunity we knew it was a good fit. With the Forest Hills acquisition, BIO gains valuable employees, a state of the art facility, and an equipment repair dealership business which allows BIO to bring additional value to customers.”

Owen Tharrington, a Principal of Gridiron Capital, commented, “The acquisition of Forest Hills is consistent with our initiatives of strategically acquiring companies that can strengthen Yellowstone and provide significant growth opportunities. During a challenging economy, Yellowstone has continued to invest in its customer sales efforts and breadth of capabilities while expanding its geographic presence. This acquisition represents Yellowstone’s fifth successful add-on acquisition since inception and marks a significant strategic expansion for BIO in the Dallas, Texas marketplace.”

About Yellowstone Landscape Group:

Yellowstone Landscape Group, headquartered in Dallas, Texas, is a national landscape leader dedicated to serving the growing demands of the commercial, municipal, institutional, resort, multi-family, HOA and estate markets. Yellowstone offers a comprehensive landscape service solution of green and sustainable practices with an emphasis on protecting, enhancing and increasing property values. Services include landscape maintenance, landscape installation, irrigation installation and maintenance, arbor care, athletic field construction, and colorscaping. Yellowstone currently serves customers in Texas, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida and the Bahamas with plans for substantial geographic expansion. By delivering best-in class horticultural and business practices, a highly skilled workforce, value-added pricing strategy and the scales of scope and efficiency, the Yellowstone Landscape Group provides its customers with a premium comprehensive service offering.

Yellowstone currently oversees three major operating subsidiaries: Austin Outdoor based in Florida, BIO Landscape & Maintenance, Inc. based in Texas, and Piedmont Landscape based in Georgia, making it the seventh largest full-service commercial landscape group in the United States. Visit www.yellowstonelandscape.com for more information.

About Gridiron Capital:

Gridiron Capital, LLC, headquartered in New Canaan, Connecticut, is a private equity firm focused on creating value by acquiring and building middle-market manufacturing, service and specialty consumer companies in the United States and Canada. The firm’s principals have historically achieved superior investment returns by employing a combination of strategic, operating and financial experience to provide portfolio companies with competitive advantages. Gridiron’s principals work closely with management teams to develop strategies for portfolio companies, as well as providing resources to execute business plans and build industry-leading companies. Additional information about Gridiron is available on the firm’s website at www.gridironcapital.com.

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