A consolidation has taken place among consolidators in the distribution realm.
After making a string of acquisitions over summer and autumn, the parent company of Florida Water Products has been purchased by industry newcomer Heritage Pool Supply Group.
Days after the deal was finalized, Heritage added a Northeastern institution to its platform: 98-year-old Hachik Distributors of Aston, Pa.
With this transaction, McKinney, Texas-based Heritage becomes the second-largest pool/spa products distributor in the U.S. “We’re elated to bring these families together, and we look forward to what the future entails,” said Carlos Del Amo, FWP’s CEO. “We believe that this is a game-changer from an industry perspective …”
Del Amo, whose 40 years in the industry also includes time with manufacturer Pentair, will now serve as COO for Heritage.
Both parties are new players in the national distribution scene. In January of 2021, FWP announced its plans to expand nationally through a consolidation model, where it would acquire existing independent distributors around the United States, after more than 35 years serving the Florida industry. It began its expansion in 2018 with Las Vegas’ American Pool Supply, then began its national strategy by purchasing California’s Pool & Electrical Products. It named the holding company AquaCentral.
In August 2021, Heritage was born of parent firm SRS, a top 100 private company that has long owned distributors in several construction-related fields. SRS is backed by two private-equity groups — Los Angeles-based Leonard Green & Partners, and Boston-based Berkshire Partners.
Heritage entered the pool/spa industry with the acquisition of Naperville, Ill.-based Aqua-Gon.
Over the course of summer and fall, FWP made a number of acquisitions, making it the second-largest distributor in the U.S. Acquirees included renowned Northeast distributor Bel Aqua Pool Supply, Utah’s Conely Company and Texas-based Mayfield Pool Supply. It also purchased two tile suppliers — Noble Tile Supply and Classic Pool Tile. “Our strategy is having the products to create that backyard environment, which is a growing piece of this industry,” Del Amo said.
Heritage and FWP had no geographical overlap, so all locations will retain their service territories in full. All told, Heritage now represents 13 brands working in 85 branches across 21 states. By year’s end, the company may close on a couple more deals, said Heritage President Matt McDermott.
The joining made sense, McDermott said, since both companies employed very similar business models — namely purchasing well-established independent distributors that mostly continue to operate business-as-usual. They retain their brands, some of which have been in place more than 50 years. Typically, the selling owners stay on board as managers, and existing staff remains in place.
“We’re not trying to make every business homogeneous or standardized,” McDermott said. “Carlos and I will celebrate the uniqueness of each individual family business and legacy. But we also will take the best practices from [each acquired company] as we grow together. ”
Each employee owns a share of the firm. “We have a founders mentality of sorts, in terms of everyone being a shareholder, being very rational and long-term-focused,” McDermott said.“We love this industry,” McDermott said. “Everyone has spent their entire lives and careers — and in many cases, multiple generations in the industry. We want to be a great steward and a positive force for all our people, our customers and dealers, and our supplier partners.”
