[caption id="attachment_89129" align="alignnone" width="500"] PODS Enterprises' "Podzilla" device lifts a container at a client's home.[/caption]
SANTA ROSA and BENICIA -- A Florida-based franchisor of stores that drop off and pick up truck-sized containers from homes and businesses on Friday said it purchased all 21 locations, including in Santa Rosa and Benicia, from its Los Angeles-based largest franchisee.
Clearwater, Fla.-based PODS Enterprises, Inc., acquired all assets of Storage Mobility, LLC, a subsidiary of private investor Andell, Inc.
Storage Mobility launched in 2004 and has other California locations in Riverside, Bakersfield, Fresno, Modesto, Sacramento and Salinas, plus sites in Washington state, Idaho, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, New York and Pennsylvania.
PODS said the purchase is part of a company strategy to own and operate more of its local markets. With the acquisition, PODS has purchased 39 locations in the last three years. The 100 additional employees from this deal adds to current PODS employment of about 900 in 46 states, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom.
"This acquisition strengthens our geographic cluster in the Northeast, allows us to build a significant cluster on the West Coast, and increases our footprint in the Mountain time zone," said John Koch, president and chief executive officer, in a statement. "Storage Mobility has been an extremely well-run operation, and there is a great cultural fit between the two organizations. We expect a very smooth integration in addition to significant operating synergies. PODS has experienced strong growth in the past two years, and combining our local operations with Storage Mobility will support that ongoing expectation."
The business model for PODS, short for Personal On-Demand Storage, drops off an ocean-going container-like box at a home or business, allows the customer to keep the box until it is full then picks up the box for long-term storage or moving to a new location.
