Proforce is Full Force Ahead

BOCA RATON, Fla. – In the competitive world of pest control, Proforce is emerging as a significant player. The company is driven by a unique approach that blends a sophisticated business strategy with a commitment to exceptional service. The Boca Raton, Fla., company’s origin story is as unconventional as its management philosophy.

Proforce is rooted in the vision of CEO Mark Shorr, a former finance professional who saw untapped potential in the pest control industry. The goal to create a fast-growing company with long-term continual growth stems from the world of investment management and strategic consulting. 

Mark Shorr

Career Collaboration. Shorr started his career at the Pacific Investment Management Company (PIMCO) before earning his MBA from the Wharton School in Philadelphia. 

“I spent prior years analyzing and investing in businesses, and I really wanted to get my hands into the operations of a business,” said Shorr, who started a consumer products business while pursuing his degree. “I had an opportunity to sell out of my first business a couple years later and then built a boutique consulting and advisory business.”

“We weren’t looking to do the traditional play of very conservative growth and squeezing margins,” recalled Shorr. “We were looking to come in and really do something transformational in the pest control industry. It was clear as day that this was the opportunity I had been really looking for.”

Movers and Shakers. What followed was a rapid transformation of Hawx that would set the stage for Proforce. Hawx grew rapidly from 2021 to 2024 and then decided to concentrate its portfolio by divesting itself of eight branches in the southeastern United States in 2024. Shorr helped facilitate the divestiture and then sought investment from family office investors — including a prominent Manhattan-based firm he previously had ties with — instead of relying on a private equity firm to take over those eight branches in Virginia, the Carolinas and Florida. Proforce was born.

“Working with a couple family office investors gives us a little bit more flexibility and it allows us to take a longer-term view on how we plan to grow and create a lot of value in the business,” explained Shorr.

The company’s growth strategy defies the traditional private equity approach most other pest control companies turn to. Instead of focusing on immediate cash flow, Proforce prioritizes organic growth through door-to-door sales and well-intentioned acquisitions. Their long-term growth strategy also revolves around adopting a management philosophy, which Shorr describes as a “three-legged stool” of sales, operations, and customer success.

“If any one of those legs is weak, then the whole structure starts to wobble,” said Shorr.

This approach is a deliberate strategy to create a more holistic and effective business model.

“When you are growing organically the way we are with door-to-door sales, and you execute the right way, you can point your powerful sales engine in a direction optimized for your business,” he said. “If you really harness the power of door-to-door sales in the early years and beyond, you’re able to really have a great degree of control and strategy on how you want to grow.”

Controlled Motivation. Shorr’s mindset allows for unprecedented control and efficiency, especially when it comes to increasing the footprint and route density available to the future of Proforce. Their expansion strategy focuses on three key pathways: filling in the expanse between existing locations, greenfielding new locations from scratch and acting on opportunistic acquisitions. The company’s data-driven approach is another key differentiator.

“We treat all aspects of the company like a science project with our data metrics and KPIs,” Shorr said. “But at the same time, we’re not really focusing too hard on some of the vanity metrics. We’re really focused on building this long-term, durable, value-creating business."

That makes their commitment to customer service integral to everything they do at every turn. Their single golden rule of thumb: if it’s something simple, just do it.

“We’re in an industry where the better we are at our job, the less the customer has to think about us. And so that gives you every reason to try harder to interact and delight the customer,” explained Shorr.

Extreme Gains. Today, Proforce operates 11 locations, with two additional branches in acquisition, across five states: Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. With 558% 3-year growth, more than 500 employees and revenue well north of $20 million, the company is positioned for significant and sustainable growth.

The hybrid nature of Proforce — combining a startup’s agility with a mature operational infrastructure — adds to its continued success. “We get the best of both worlds where it feels like this kind of startup, fast-paced culture, but without a lot of the detriments that startups typically have,” said Shorr.

For other up-and-coming entrepreneurs in the field, Shorr emphasizes three key principles for success: the importance of mastering your financial numbers, going above and beyond for customers and being selective about team building.

“You have to be really thinking about how to create a great culture and make it so your company is a really fantastic place to grow," he explained.

Looking forward, Proforce aims to be more than just another pest control company. They’ve got their sights on PCT’s Top 100 list with an unwavering commitment to balancing sales, operations and customer success.

“If we’re able to master all three and keep them in harmonious balance, then I think we’re going to build one of the greatest businesses out there,” said Shorr.