LAKEWOOD, Colo.—The owners of 19 Midas and Big O Tires locations in Colorado have acquired 30 more Midas stores across the country from parent company TBC Corp. in a partnership arrangement.
Judd Schader, owner of Leeds West Inc., and Jeff Genuario, owner of Midas of Colorado, formed a partnership—Leeds West Groups—to effect the acquisition of the Midas locations in nine Midwestern and Eastern states. Financial terms were not disclosed.
The two business owners said the deal will allow them to enhance the Midas brand that they operate at their respective store locations.
The stores in question are in three geographic constellations: New England (Connecticut, three stores, and Massachusetts, two stores); Mid-Atlantic (Delaware, two stores, New Jersey, four stores and Pennsylvania, five stores); and the greater Chicago metro area (Illinois, five, Indiana, three, Michigan, two, and Wisconsin, four).
The deal affects more than 200 employees at those locations, Leeds West said. Mr. Shader said Leeds West offered all the employees the opportunity to continue under the new ownership.
The two partners come from widely diverse backgrounds, according to Mr. Shader.
Mr. Genuario is a third-generation Midas store owner, operating 10 Midas franchise locations in Colorado, in Colorado Springs, Denver and Pueblo, while Mr. Shader is just a few years out of college, but already with five Midas, one Speedee Muffler and four Big O Tire stores in the Denver area.
Mr. Genuario took over Midas of Colorado earlier this year after his father, Ron Genuario, retired. The business was started by Jeff Genuario's grandfather, Wes Westland, who opened two Midas locations in Denver in 1975.
Mr. Shader said he originally got backing from family members, who have real estate holdings in Florida, but he's built the business in Denver steadily. He started with two Midas locations in 2009 and three more in 2010, and then four corporate Big O stores in the Denver area in 2011.
Mr. Shader said he closed the first deal, in 2009, while still an undergraduate at the University of Colorado in Boulder.
Mr. Shader said he started looking for a partner about a year ago to help ramp up the expansion plan he had in mind.
He said the partners will consider buying more stores once they've gotten the ones they're purchasing up and running to their satisfaction.
The business is expected to generate about $55 million in revenue in its first full year of operation, according to Mr. Shader, and grow from there.
The 30 stores were among the 78 that TBC “inherited” in its $310 million acquisition of Midas Inc. in May 2012. TBC is working to refranchise those locations, according to Bill Ketchem, vice president of franchise development.
“The goal is to get 100-percent franchised,” he said in an interview with Tire Business earlier this year. “We expect to get there this year with Midas, where we have deals pending.”
To reach this reporter: bdavis@ crain.com; 330-865-6145.