PawsPlus and VIP PetCare Merge to Create the Largest Provider of Affordable Veterinary Care in the Country
BOSTON – December 3, 2014 – Pet Services Operating Corporation d/b/a PawsPlus (“PawsPlus”), a portfolio company of H.I.G. Growth Partners, has merged with VIP PetCare Holdings, Inc. (“VIP PetCare”) to form Community Veterinary Clinics, LLC (“CVC”). Headquartered in Windsor, CA, VIP PetCare provides affordable pet wellness services through standalone wellness centers and community clinics hosted at local pet and feed retail stores. The business combination brings together over 600 employees across 24 office locations serving approximately 1,500 unique clinic locations.
Will Santana, CEO of CVC, commented, “The combination of two industry leaders will not change our focus on the customer. We will continue to provide the highest level of wellness services to pets and the people who love them – the same level of service that VIP and PawsPlus have provided for the past 20 years. We are excited about the future of the business and the partnership with H.I.G.”
Steve Loose, a Managing Director with H.I.G. Growth Partners, commented, “We are proud of the business that we built alongside the PawsPlus team and we look forward to working with Will and the entire VIP PetCare team in the next phase of the combined company’s growth.”
Previously, PawsPlus also operated VETCO branded veterinary clinics and hospitals at approximately 200 PETCO Animal Supplies, Inc. (“PETCO”) retail locations. Immediately prior to the merger with VIP PetCare, PawsPlus completed the sale of all of its Vetco related assets to PETCO who continues to operate them on their own behalf.
About Community Veterinary Clinics, LLC
Headquartered in Windsor, CA, CVC is the largest and fastest growing provider of affordable pet wellness services in the United States. The company offers its services through standalone wellness centers and community clinics hosted in approximately 1,500 pet and feed retail stores. Services include: microchipping, vaccinations, prescription flea and tick control, heartworm prevention, testing, and deworming. For more information and to find a clinic, please refer to the website at www.vippetcare.com.
About H.I.G. Growth Partners
H.I.G. Growth Partners is the dedicated growth capital investment affiliate of H.I.G. Capital, a leading global private equity investment firm with over $17 billion of capital under management.* We seek to make both majority and minority investments in strong, growth oriented businesses located throughout North America, South America and Europe. We will invest $5 million to $30 million in equity in a given company and target investments in profitable growth oriented businesses with between $10 million and $100 million in revenues. We consider investments across all industries, but focus on certain high-growth sectors where H.I.G. has extensive in-house expertise such as technology, healthcare, internet and media, consumer products and technology-enabled financial and business services. Growth Partners strives to work closely with our management teams to serve as an experienced resource, providing broad-based strategic, operational, recruiting and financial management services from a vast in-house team and a substantial network of third-party relationships. For more information, please refer to the H.I.G. website at www.HIGgrowth.com.
* Based on total capital commitments to funds managed by H.I.G. Capital and its affiliates.