PestNow acquired by CenterOak Partners
PestNow (the “Company”), headquartered in Sterling, Virginia, has been acquired by Palmetto Exterminators, a portfolio company of CenterOak Partners, a Dallas, Texas-based private equity firm. The transaction closed on July 31, 2023.
Founded in 1995, PestNow serves customers through eight branches providing residential and commercial pest control services across Virginia, Maryland, D.C. and West Virginia. The Company ranked number 31 on the most recent PCT Top 100 list.
Said Tony Bowers, one of the founding owners of PestNow, “We are extremely pleased with this outcome. The CenterOak and Palmetto teams were great to deal with and we know this will be a great opportunity for our people. And LR Tullius as our advisor and facilitator through the entire process was exceptional. The process was seamless and incredibly smooth from start to finish”.
CenterOak also announced that it has formed Entomo Brands, which manages multiple insect-related service companies operating under well-established regional and local brands. Following the acquisition of PestNow, Entomo Brands employs more than 350 team members and operates 17 branches across six states with a concentrated footprint in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions. Entomo intends to continue to grow organically and through add-on acquisitions.
“The acquisition of PestNow more than doubles the footprint and earnings of the Company since CenterOak completed a majority investment in Palmetto Exterminators in 2022,” said Eric Holter, Managing Director at CenterOak. “Scaling Entomo Brands into on of the top 25 largest providers of pest control services in the United States is an important milestone in the execution of our investment thesis.”
“The addition of PestNow significantly expands our existing service area and gives us a strong entry point to the highly attractive Virginia, Maryland, D.C. and West Virginia markets,” said Brian Butler, CEO of Entomo Brands. “PestNow is an ideal fit with our growing family of brands and shares our core values and commitment to a customer centric approach. We are excited to welcome the PestNow team and to provide customers with an enhanced range of services and support.”
LR Tullius represented and served as financial advisor to PestNow in connection with the transaction.