TSG Consumer Partners has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Joe Hudson’s Collision Centers (JHCC) from Carousel Capital. Post-closing, Carousel Capital and JHCC management will continue as minority investors.
JHCC is an operator of more than 100 auto body repair shops across the Southeastern region of the United States including Alabama (30), Florida (28), Georgia (6), Kentucky (2), Mississippi (5), North Carolina (7), Tennessee (3), Texas (16) and Virginia (5). The company’s first repair shop was opened in 1989 in Montgomery, AL by founder Joe Hudson. JHCC provides its customers with a real-time web-based repair tracking system that allows them to monitor the status of their repairs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. JHCC is headquartered near Montgomery in Pike Road, AL (www.jhcc.com).
Carousel Capital acquired JHCC in October 2014. At that time the company operated 23 stores in Alabama, Florida and Georgia. The company’s store growth was accomplished through both organic growth and add-on acquisitions including the recent buys of Stallings Collision Centers, a Virginia-based based operator of 11 collision repair centers in August 2019; St. Matthews Imports, a Kentucky-based operator of two collision repair centers in May 2019; and Car Guys Collision Repair, a Florida-based operator of 13 collision repair centers in July 2018.
“JHCC’s longstanding reputation for providing customers with exceptional service has enabled it to grow into one of the leading regional players in the collision repair industry,” said Pierre LeComte, managing director at TSG. “We are thrilled to join forces with JHCC CEO Traweek Dickson and the management team as the company looks to capitalize on a number of compelling growth opportunities, including increasing its geographic footprint and expanding in its existing and adjacent markets.”
San Francisco-based TSG invests from $200 million to $800 million of equity in high-growth, branded consumer companies. Sectors of specific interest include beauty, fitness and outdoor, food and beverage, personal care, household, lifestyle, pet, restaurant, and retail. In January 2019, the firm closed its eighth fund with an oversubscribed $4 billion of limited partner capital commitments (www.tsgconsumer.com).
Carousel Capital, the seller of JHCC, invests in business, consumer and healthcare services companies that are headquartered in the Southeastern United States and have enterprise values of up to $200 million and EBITDA of at least $3 million. The firm, based in Charlotte, was founded in 1996 and is led by managing partners Charles Grigg and Jason Schmidly (www.carouselcapital.com).
Interested readers can access two 2018 reports on the collision repair industry from Body Shop Business magazine and from Focus Investment Banking.
Harris Williams was the financial advisor to Carousel Capital and JHCC on this transaction which is expected to close in the third quarter.
© 2019 Private Equity Professional | August 23, 2019
