Trivest Partners has formed Pet Resort Hospitality Group (PRHG) as a platform in the pet services sector with a specific focus on daycare, boarding, grooming, and training.
Partnering with Trivest on PRHG are co-founders Azhar Quader, the founder of Queens Court Capital, and Eyal Cohen, a pet services operating executive.
Queens Court had previously backed Veterinary Care Group (VCG), a veterinary services company that operated three locations in the New York City area. During its 3-year investment term which began in 2018, VCG grew into a platform with more than 200 employees across 14 locations in New York and Denver. In May 2021, National Veterinary Associates (NVA), a portfolio company of private equity firm JAB, acquired VCG. Mr. Cohen served as the director of business development at VCG from 2020 to 2021 and then held the same position at NVA until earlier this month when he left to launch PRHG.
“We believe that PRHG has the opportunity to become a scaled platform with several best-in-class brands across multiple markets,” said Mr. Quader, who will serve as the executive chairman of PRHG. “There are over 128,000 similar businesses in the United States amounting to a total annual spend of $9 billion in pet boarding, grooming, and daycare services. We are confident that our deep industry experience and expertise in rapidly scaling businesses through acquisitions will help us be successful growing PRHG to its full potential.”
Trivest will back PRHG with capital from its $600 million Trivest Discovery Fund II LP (Discovery II) which closed in May 2022. Trivest’s Discovery funds invest in founder and family-owned businesses with less than $4 million in EBITDA that operate in fragmented industries that have the potential to scale through add-on acquisitions that can be effectively integrated into a larger platform.
The formation of PRHG is the second platform investment made by Discovery II and follows the formation of Open Road, an Austin, Texas-based platform formed by Trivest in September 2022 to consolidate the automotive collision repair sector. OpenRoad currently operates 14 collision repair centers under four brands in Texas and New Mexico.
“PRHG represents a unique opportunity for Trivest to partner with a talented and experienced leadership team to build a leading, full-suite pet services platform,” said Brian Connell, a partner at Trivest. “Trivest’s strategy of partnering with and growing founder and family-owned businesses in fragmented industries is well-aligned with PRHG. We plan to leverage Trivest’s deep consumer services experience to help PRHG become one of the leading pet services companies while preserving the lasting legacies and established brands that founders have built.”
PRHG first acquisition is the buy of Play All Day (PAD), a five-location pet services company that provides daycare, boarding, grooming, and dog bath services. The company operates across New Hampshire and Massachusetts.
Amanda Field founded PAD in 2007 and she will continue to operate the business and assist PRHG in greenfielding new PAD locations across the Northeast.
“I’m proud to partner with Queens Court and Trivest in building a new platform in the pet resort and hospitality space,” said Mr. Cohen, who will now become the chief development officer of PRHG. “We are building the very best pet hospitality business in the industry and plan to be a home for many owners like Amanda. We will nurture a collaborative and familial culture by empowering employees, investing in their personal well-being, and creating the best culture in the pet services industry.”
Trivest was founded in 1981 and has completed more than 500 transactions totaling over $8 billion in value. Sectors of interest include niche manufacturing, distribution, business and healthcare services, and consumer industries. Trivest has approximately $4 billion in assets under management and an investment team of more than 60 professionals in offices in Coral Gables (headquarters), Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Toronto.
Queens Court Capital is a special situations and control-oriented investor based in New York City.
© 2023 Private Equity Professional | April 21, 2023
