MIAMI — Rentokil acquired Oliver Exterminating Corp., which includes entities Arizona Exterminating, Guarantee Floridian Pest Control and Oliver Exterminating of Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. The deal closed on Nov. 1; terms were not disclosed.
The acquisition of Oliver Exterminating Corp., a $32.5 million business, greatly expands Rentokil’s footprint in Arizona and Florida and marks the company’s first entry into the Caribbean. Oliver has 16 offices — including four in Florida, five in Arizona, six in Puerto Rico one in the Dominican Republic — and employs 371 people.
Oliver had been owned by Olivier Grinda and his family since 1982. Grinda’s minority partner had been industry veteran Larry Weinberg; he retired in 2003, at which point Bert Putterman, who had been with the business since 1989, took over as president and CEO. Putterman told PCT that a few years ago Grinda had turned Oliver over to his children, and that the family decided to exit pest control in order to focus on its other holdings.
Putterman, who is 62, will continue to run the Oliver operation, including representing the company within NPMA. Rentokil and Oliver are still working through transition plans, so Putterman said his future role has not been clearly defined, but currently he has been spending significant time in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, markets where Oliver has experienced tremendous growth in recent years, and one that is new to Rentokil. Also being retained is Putterman’s long-tenured management team, including Doug Wyly (Arizona Exterminating); Nick Garcia (Guarantee Floridian); and Michael Holston (Oliver, Puerto Rico and Dominican Republic).
Putterman said he is excited about future opportunities for his team. “One of the things that happens in companies, is that unless you are growing dynamically, upward advancement becomes frozen,” he said. “With Rentokil there is a ton of opportunities, so it provides a lot of talented people on the Oliver side with room to move.”
At press time, Rentokil could not comment on the acquisition due to UK regulatory rules.
Tullius Partners acted as financial adviser to Oliver Exterminating Corp.