2021 SEMA Show Update: SEMA Affirms Commitment to Outstanding Show in November by SEMA Editors
“At a time when COVID is back in the headlines, SEMA wants you to know that the association is 100% committed to holding the 2021 SEMA Show, Nov. 2–5, and showcasing two years of product innovations, vehicle trends and industry-leading education,” said Tom Gattuso, SEMA vice president of events. “The SEMA Show is the only place in the world that brings together the people, products, vehicles and ideas that drive the aftermarket industry.” Concerning safety measures, the COVID landscape and state and local requirements are changing week to week. With this rapid pace of change, SEMA expects to know more in the coming weeks about the specific measures that will be required in November. “Meanwhile, the basics are in place. The Las Vegas Convention Center has been awarded the GBAC STAR certification, which demonstrates the highest standards
for daily cleaning, air filtration and sanitization. It is the gold standard for safe facilities,” said Gattuso.
Select aisles have been widened for enhanced attendee flow. An updated floorplan will also make the Show easier to navigate and allows for optimal locations for new and returning event features. “SEMA is committed to delivering an event that exhibitors and attendees can rely on to network and conduct business,” said Gattuso. “We are working with Nevada authorities amidst an evolving landscape to deliver an outstanding event consistent with local health and safety requirements in November.” To register and learn more about the 2021 SEMA Show, visit www.SEMAShow.com. Source: SEMA
Crash Champions Adds 3 Locations to Growing National Footprint Crash Champions, LLC, one of the nation’s fastest growing independent collision repair companies, announced Sept. 14 it has acquired Robbie’s Auto, located at 238 Route 46 East in Dover, NJ; Total Auto Body, located at 1635 N. Port Washington Road in Grafton, WI; and Racine Auto Body, located at 1100 S. Airline Road in Racine, WI. With the addition of Robbie’s Auto, Crash Champions marks its first entrance into the New Jersey market, a natural complement to the Pennsylvania presence the company gained following its acquisition of Signature Collision Centers earlier this year. The additions of Total Auto Body and Racine Auto Body strategically supplements the company’s recent acquisitions of D&M Auto Body, Quality Auto Body, Silver Spring Collision Center and Gillette’s Collision Center, bringing the company’s number of locations in Wisconsin to eight.
Observations on Collision Works Sale to Gerber By David Roberts, Focus Advisors Automotive
The following is a letter sent Sept. 1 to Focus Advisors’ clients and colleagues by Managing Director David Roberts. Gerber’s recent acquisition of Collision Works (CW) is the largest acquisition of an independent MSO in the last three years. Combined with the acquisition of John Harris Body Shops in South Carolina, we estimate Gerber has added nearly 10% to its overall revenues with these two large acquisitions. These two acquisitions by Gerber reflect the continued strength of large consolidators in growing their businesses. It takes a lot of revenue to move the dial on a big enterprise like Gerber. We estimate Collision Works’ revenues in the $100 million range in Oklahoma and Kansas, three fast-growing Midwestern markets (Oklahoma City, Kansas City and Tulsa), and a host of smaller adjacent markets. John Harris operated 16 shops with an estimated revenue of $40 million with large and small shops across South Carolina
and parts of Georgia. The growth of Collision Works is a template for other rapidly growing MSOs Jake Nossaman and his team built a solid foundation, beginning with large well-located operations in and around the Oklahoma City market. They continued to grow with both greenfield and acquisition strategies. CW entered a second large market, Kansas City, with a greenfield development and proceeded to acquire shops in and around that market. With an eight-shop MSO acquisition (Auto Craft), CW expanded its reach into the Wichita market and continued adding single shops to reach the full complement of 36 shops upon sale to Gerber. To finance some of its initial growth, CW teamed up with a substantial capital partner—Bank of Oklahoma. In 2019, it refinanced its real estate portfolio to acquire $50 million in additional capital and used these resources to pay down debt, continue buying and integrating shops across their markets.
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Exit Strategies Along the way, Collision Works also looked at the possibility of joining forces with a very large private equity firm. In the end, because of its scale and infrastructure, Collision Works had multiple exit opportunities—from selling to a consolidator to recapitalizing the company with a large private equity investor to merging with other strong operators. With few remaining regional MSOs left in the U.S. approaching the size of Collision Works, we expect the scarcity value will allow those remaining operators with more than $50 million in sales to continue to find enthusiastic buyers—or private equity investors. For rapidly growing regional and super-regional MSOs, scale, infrastructure, relationships with insurers and access to capital will be the primary elements determining future success. Source: Focus Advisors
AUTOBODY
“With these three acquisitions, I am excited for Crash Champions to enter the New Jersey market and strengthen our presence in the Milwaukee market,” said Matt Ebert, founder and CEO of Crash Champions. “What unites these three facilities is that they each possess highly trained technicians that work in state-of-the-art facilities and provide the highest quality repairs. Their dedication to the customer experience and commitment to safety exemplify everything that we stand for at Crash, making each of them a natural addition to our growing national footprint of locations. “I am pleased to welcome them to our championship team, and I look forward to leveraging our resources to further enhance the services provided to customers and partners.” For more information about Crash Champions, visit www. crashchampions.com. Source: Crash Champions
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