Leading Omni-channel Seller of Specialty Agriculture and Hydroponics Equipment and Supplies Adds One of the Nation’s Largest Commercial Hydroponic Superstore/Distribution Centers to its Growing Portfolio
Hydrobuilder Holdings LLC (“Hydrobuilder Holdings” or “the Company”) a leading omni-channel retailer of specialty agriculture and hydroponics equipment and supplies, today announced that it has acquired Los Angeles, Calif.-based Elevated Equipment Supply (“Elevated”), a full-service equipment and supplies provider for the commercial cultivation and extraction industries. Elevated is one of the nation’s largest commercial hydroponic superstore/distribution centers with a high-quality roster of hundreds of commercial clients that encompasses approximately 75,000 square feet of warehouse space. Inclusive of this acquisition, the Company’s combined retail stores and warehouse space totals approximately 225,000 square feet.
“By incorporating Elevated, we have put in place the third pillar of Hydrobuilder Holdings’ omni-channel platform consisting of proven leaders in hydroponics equipment and supplies across e-commerce, brick-and-mortar retail, and distribution. In fact, we are now uniquely positioned to provide commercial growers and home gardeners with the highest level of service, product selection, education and value,” said Markus Hockenson, Chief Executive Officer.
“Looking ahead, our intention now is to focus on multiple avenues for growth, including new acquisition opportunities in existing and strategic markets, development of distribution centers and stores outside of our current service area, and expansion of our strong commercial business. We are very excited about the tremendous market opportunity in front of us as well as our ability to capitalize on the growth ahead across hydroponics, specialty gardening and controlled environment agriculture (CEA) markets by extending our lead in existing channels, regions and customer segments,” he concluded.
“This new partnership with Hydrobuilder Holdings is just the first step of many in our quest to provide exceptional service and efficient solutions to more clients nationwide. With the support of CEO Markus Hockenson, CFO Avi Levine, CTO Justin Marshall, Hydrobuilder, and GreenCoast Hydroponics, we now have the opportunity to create something truly special and unique that will change the way business is done in our industry. I look forward to embarking on this journey with this exceptionally talented team in order to expand on our current success and take our vision to the next level,” said Max Wu, Co-Founder of Elevated Equipment Supply.
“We finally found the right partners. After observing the evolution of the hydroponics industry over the last six years, we decided that now was the right time to form new relationships in order to respond better to our industry’s needs. We’ve been witness to a very strong ambition to grow the business, both internally from our clients and externally from industry consolidation, while at the same time requiring capital to facilitate that growth. By working with the Hydrobuilder Holdings team, we will be able to expand our core competencies and grow our Omni Channel platform across the US. We’re more than excited to work with Markus and Avi as we constantly expand our customer base and suite of services, and we look forward to what we can achieve together in the future!” said Joseph Lifschutz, Co-Founder of Elevated Equipment Supply.
The Elevated integration follows Hydrobuilder Holdings LLC’s formation in December 2020 to build the international omni-channel leader in the sale of hydroponic and specialty garden products. The Company was organized with over $70 million in financing from a broad group of investors led by Broadband Capital Investments. In January 2021, it acquired Hydrobuilder.com, a leading online retailer of hydroponics and horticultural supplies, and GreenCoast Hydroponics, the second largest hydroponics retailer in the United States.
Hydrobuilder Holding’s Current Sales Channels
Inclusive of these acquisitions, the Company operates through the following three sales channels:
- Online: Over 13,000 products from over 50 vendors are sold to commercial growers and hobbyists online.
- Retail: Twelve retail hydroponic/gardening centers focused on serving hobbyists, growers and cultivators.
- Distribution: Regional distribution centers function as warehouse, distribution and fulfillment centers for directing products to commercial customers using company owned delivery trucks and third-party logistics companies. The centers also supply smaller stores and fulfill online orders.
About Hydrobuilder Holdings LLC
Hydrobuilder Holdings LLC was formed in December 2020 on the basis of a “three-pillar” omni-channel strategy in the specialty agriculture and hydroponics equipment and supply industry. The Company is led Markus Hockenson, Chief Executive Officer, and Avi Levine, Chief Financial Officer, both of whom bring extensive digital and retail experience, and a proven track record of driving revenue, earnings growth and value creation at private-equity owned companies. Since its formation, Hydrobuilder Holdings has successfully closed three separate transactions: Hydrobuilder.com, GreenCoast Hydroponics, and Elevated Equipment Supply.
About Hydrobuilder.com
Founded in 2011, Hydrobuilder.com is based in Northern California and has rapidly grown to become a leading online retailer of hydroponics and horticultural supplies. The management team previously helped Build.com grow to over $1 billion in sales, and has built Hydrobuilder.com into a complete online hydroponic gardening center that is known for having the top product lines, a fast, user-friendly website and knowledgeable employees.
About GreenCoast Hydroponics
Founded in 1999, GreenCoast is a Southern California-based specialty agriculture / hydroponics products retailer and the largest independent retailer of its kind in the United States. GreenCoast operates 12 stores (10 in California, 1 in Las Vegas and 1 in Portland, OR), that provide equipment, plant consumable products and design services to growers ranging from the hobbyist to the largest licensed commercial operators. Senior management is known throughout the industry as experts in design of large-scale industrial growing facilities.
About Elevated Equipment Supply
Founded in 2015, Elevated became one of the industry’s first all-in-one cultivation and extraction service providers built around a consultative approach focused on not only selling equipment, but also solutions. Leveraging its exceptional reputation with larger growers and extractors, Elevated has greatly expanded its service and distribution capabilities and is now one of the largest commercial supercenters in the industry, servicing commercial growers and extractors in multiple states from its approximately 75,000 square foot warehouse. Their specialty services include expert support in the areas of botanical extraction, agricultural cultivation, facility layout & design, irrigation optimization and custom packaging.