Halifax Group Portfolio Company Animal Supply Company Completes Three Acquisitions in the Third Quarter
Halifax Builds the First Nationwide Platform in Independent Pet Distribution
DALLAS, TX — October 21, 2013 — The Halifax Group (“Halifax”) announced today that Animal Supply Company (“Animal Supply”), one of the nation’s leading pet food and supply distributors, has completed three more acquisitions since July. Animal Supply now covers more than 40 states, represents over 300 pet product manufacturers and delivers to more than 9,000 pet retail stores. Halifax made its initial investment in Animal Supply alongside management in April 2010 and has completed nine add-on acquisitions since that time.
On July 15, Animal Supply completed the acquisition of Brea, CA-based Pet Food Wholesale. Bob Johnson, Ken Bacon and the entire PFW team joined Animal Supply and will continue to serve the Southern California and surrounding markets. The two companies will be combining operations in a new, state-of-the-art 100,000 plus square foot distribution facility in Southern California later this year.
On September 19, Animal Supply partnered with New Hope, Minnesota based RFG Distributing, Inc. RFG will continue to operate under the RFG Distributing name and continue to be led by Steve Thoeny and the rest of the executive team. RFG is a third generation family owned business serving a fourteen state territory, and is the leading distributor in the Midwest.
On September 30, Florida-based Elf Pet Products joined forces with Animal Supply subsidiary Summit Pet Products. Ernesto Alvarez, President of Elf, and the Elf team will work alongside Summit to serve the independent retail community in Florida, Georgia and the Caribbean/Latin America.
Transaction terms for these three acquisitions were not disclosed.
Brent Williams, Managing Director at Halifax, said, “Our goal with Animal Supply is to build a platform that combines national reach with operational excellence and unmatched customer service. These add-ons have substantially broadened the company’s geographic footprint and have made Animal Supply a leading, coast-to-coast player in the independent pet retail market.”
Separately, Animal Supply named a new CEO, George Ristevski, effective October7, 2013. Mr. Ristevski, a 30-year veteran of distribution businesses, will work closely with the company’s regional presidents to enhance Animal Supply’s offering of value-added retailer and vendor services across the country. Mr. Ristevski brings a wealth of experience in managing distribution platforms and deep industry relationships to complement Animal Supply’s team.
About Animal Supply Company
Animal Supply is one of the nation’s leading pet food and supply distributors. Headquartered in Federal Way, Washington, Animal Supply provides weekly service to customers in more than 40 states from Barrow, Alaska to Miami, Florida. With more than 1,000,000 square feet of warehouse space and some of the most advanced distribution technologies available, the company delivers over 15,000 unique SKUs to more than 9,000 customers with market-leading efficiency and accuracy. For more information, please visit www.animalsupply.com.
About The Halifax Group
The Halifax Group is a private equity firm that partners with managers and entrepreneurs to recapitalize and grow lower middle-market businesses across a variety of industries including health and wellness, infrastructure, business and government services and franchising. The firm maintains offices in Washington, D.C.; Dallas, TX; and Raleigh, NC. For more information, please visit www.thehalifaxgroup.com.
