Latest add-on acquisition allows PureStar to expand into healthcare laundry services
Emerald Textiles is a provider of healthcare laundry and linen management services. The company provides pickup, processing, and delivery of linens and textile products to hospitals, clinics, and healthcare systems.
January 12, 2026|John McNulty
PureStar, a provider of commercial laundry services and a portfolio company of Cornell Capital, has acquired Emerald Textiles, a portfolio company of Pacific Avenue Capital Partners.
Emerald Textiles is a provider of healthcare laundry and linen management services. The company provides pickup, processing, and delivery of linens and textile products to hospitals, clinics, and healthcare systems. The company processes traditional linens as well as specialty items such as mops, mats, scrubs, and isolation gowns designed to meet strict hygiene and regulatory standards.
Pacific Avenue acquired Emerald in 2017 and during its ownership term closed four add-on acquisitions and completed a greenfield expansion in California.
“Emerald exemplifies the Pacific Avenue investment strategy of buying fundamentally good businesses and unlocking value through operational improvement, capital investment, and accelerated growth,” said Chris Sznewajs, the founder and managing partner of Pacific Avenue. “We take pride in Emerald’s extraordinary transformation under our ownership. The company capitalized on Pacific Avenue’s experience and ability to build industry-leading companies. We congratulate and thank Andy Kratky, Emerald’s Chief Executive Officer, and the senior management team for their strategic vision, tremendous execution, and passion.”
Emerald, led by CEO Andy Kratky, is headquartered in San Diego and operates 12 processing facilities and 3 depots across California, Nevada, Arizona, and Utah.
“We are proud of the business we have built at Emerald and the trust we’ve earned from our healthcare customers,” said Mr. Kratky. “Joining PureStar’s nationwide portfolio of brands and facilities provides us with the scale and resources to continue to grow with, and provide top-tier service to, our healthcare customers in both existing and new geographies.”
PureStar is a provider of commercial laundry services specializing in outsourced linen and textile care for the hospitality industry. The company operates a nationwide network of full-service laundry facilities and manages linens, towels, uniforms, and specialty items for hotels, resorts, restaurants, spas, and other hospitality customers. PureStar processes more than 800 million pounds of linen annually through a portfolio of regional brands.
PureStar’s operating model allows hospitality operators to outsource their on-site laundry operations to PureStar’s centralized wash, dry, and delivery services. PureStar operates across major U.S. markets and maintains additional operations in Mexico, and the Bahamas. PureStar, led by CEO Brian Herington, is headquartered in Las Vegas.
“Emerald has built an exceptional platform, and we are excited to bring their capabilities in healthcare laundry services to the PureStar platform,” said Mr. Herington. “This investment bolsters both PureStar and Emerald by adding additional depth of experience and best practices. The combination will also enable continued investment in our people, facilities, and systems across our national network.”
Cornell Capital acquired PureStar in 2018 and has closed numerous add-on acquisitions including Nevada-based Apex Linen (2022), California-based Radiant Services Corporation (2025), Mississippi-based Southern Linen Services (2025), New England-based People’s Linen (2025), and Colorado-based Breck’s Commercial Laundries (2025). The acquisition of Emerald is PureStar’s first large-scale expansion into healthcare laundry services.
Emily Pollack
“This transaction represents an important milestone in our strategy to build a scaled, diversified essential services platform,” said Emily Pollack, a partner at Cornell Capital. “Emerald is a best-in-class operator with a strong management team and a culture that aligns well with PureStar’s. By bringing together leading hospitality and healthcare laundry platforms, we are creating a differentiated market leader with long-term growth opportunities.”
New York and Hong Kong-headquartered Cornell Capital was founded in 2013 by Henry Cornell, the former vice-chairman of Goldman Sachs’ merchant banking division, to invest in companies in the consumer, energy, financial, and industrial sectors. In March 2022, the firm held an above-target closing of Cornell Capital Partners II LP with $1.7 billion in capital commitments. Cornell’s inaugural fund closed in June 2018 with $1.3 billion in capital commitments.
Pacific Avenue specializes in middle-market corporate divestitures, carve-outs, and other complex transactions. The firm targets North American-focused companies with up to $1 billion in revenue and up to $50 million in EBITDA. As a control investor, Pacific Avenue acquires both performing and underperforming businesses across various industries, making the firm effectively industry agnostic.
In May 2023, Pacific Avenue held a final, oversubscribed close of its first fund, Pacific Avenue Fund I LP, at its hard cap of $500 million in capital commitments. The fund was backed by a range of investors, including insurance companies, consultants, endowments, foundations, funds of funds, family offices, and individuals. Today, Pacific Avenue manages over $1.2 billion in assets.
Jefferies was the financial advisor to PureStar and Cornell Capital. Piper Sandler & Co. and Lincoln International advised Pacific Avenue and Emerald.
New York and Hong Kong-headquartered 
