CPC acquired Trades Holding Company’s portfolio of Mr. Rooter and Mr. Electric franchises in Columbus, Cleveland and Toledo, Ohio.
CPC, a private equity firm based in Kansas City, recently acquired the Columbus, Ohio-based Trades Holding Company and its Neighborly portfolio of Mr. Rooter and Mr. Electric locations in Ohio. The financial terms of the deal, which was closed in July, were not disclosed.
Boxwood Partners, a boutique investment bank based in Juniper, Florida, acted as the exclusive sell-side advisor to Trades on the transaction. Brian Alas, the managing director of Boxwood, said the portfolio of Neighborly brands sold to CPC included three Mr. Rooter and three Mr. Electric franchise locations in Columbus, Cleveland and Toledo, Ohio.
CPC was formed from the merging of Curran Companies’ and C3 Capital’s management teams. CPC seeks to deploy $600 million to $700 million into lower middle market businesses over the next five years, according to the company.
Founded in 1994 by Jim Eble, Trades is the largest Mr. Rooter franchisee, in terms of revenue generation, according to Boxwood. Trades employs 250 employees, including 215 trade professionals across three markets in Ohio, according to the company. Along with being a franchisee of Mr. Rooter and Mr. Electric, the company also operates Right Restoration water mitigation services, an independent restoration business solely focused on water damage.
“Trades’ technician-centric business creates a foundation for the company’s sustainable growth and employee retention. This focus, along with the shift in consumer preferences to ‘do-it-for-me’ makes Trades a great addition to CPC’s family of companies,” Wiley Curran, chairman of CPC, said in a statement.
Brian Alas, managing director of Boxwood Partners
“Residential and commercial services continue to be a very attractive sector for investors. It’s a new trend. Similar to activity previously seen in the fitness and restaurant space, Trades demonstrates how private equity has shifted to opportunities within the franchisee base to find ways to be a part of top-tier franchisors,” Alas said. “Trades represents an opportunity to invest not only in a recession-resilient end market, but also stands to benefit from the broader exposure to Neighborly’s portfolio of service brands.”
Based in Waco, Texas, Neighborly owns more than 30 home services brands. In addition to Mr. Rooter and Mr. Electric, the company counts Molly Maid, Rainbow Restoration, Junk King and Window Genie among its brands.