William Blair acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Petsense, a portfolio company of Winona Capital, in connection with its sale to Tractor Supply Company for $145 million. The transaction announced and closed on September 29, 2016.
Transaction Highlights
- Deep relationships and sector expertise: Petsense was attracted to William Blair’s extensive knowledge and experience in the high-growth specialty retail and pet sectors, recent transaction experience, and strong relationships with likely strategic and financial acquirers worldwide.
- Trusted guidance:William Blair’s relationship with Petsense has spanned multiple years. The transaction team hosted Petsense management during William Blair’s 2014 Private Equity Conference, subsequently advised the board on possible strategies to maximize value of the business, and managed each step of the transaction process to facilitate an excellent outcome for its broad list of shareholders.
- Highly strategic acquisition:The acquisition of Petsense provides an immediate, highly complementary expansion of Tractor Supply’s pet specialty retail business. The pet industry represents a $60 billion market driven by favorable pet ownership trends and the continued humanization of pets by their owners. Tractor Supply plans to continue to grow the Petsense store base at a target rate of 15% to 20% annually.
About the Companies
Petsense is a small-box pet specialty supply retailer with 136 stores in primarily small and midsize communities across 25 states. Petsense stores are focused on meeting the needs of pet owners and offer a variety of pet products and services. The company was founded in 2005 in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Winona Capital Management provides acquisition and growth capital to lower middle-market companies. The firm has particular interest and experience in businesses focused on a wide range of industries including consumer goods, leisure, manufacturing, retail, and education services.
Tractor Supply is the largest rural-lifestyle retail store chain in the United States, providing agricultural machine parts, farm, and ranch supply products including animal feeds, fencing, power tools, riding mowers, and work clothing, as well as tools for gardening, irrigation, welding, and towing. Tractor Supply offers both name-brand merchandise and its own stable of private-label goods. It operates over 1,500 stores nationwide under the Tractor Supply Company and Del's Feeds and Farm Supply banners. Stores are concentrated in rural areas and near large cities to cater to full and part-time farmers, ranchers, and contractors.