An RV dealership in West Seneca, N.Y., was acquired last Wednesday by a fast-growing national company backed by private equity as part of a larger transaction involving seven stores in three states.
This story by Jonathan D. Epstein originally appeared in The Buffalo News.
RV Retailer of Fort Lauderdale agreed in October to buy RV One Superstores from Don Strollo, who will continue to lead the business and retains a large ownership stake. The acquisition, whose price was not disclosed, gives RV Retailer a total of 17 stores, including RV One’s locations in Buffalo and Albany; Orlando, Sarasota and Tampa, Fla.; and Des Moines, Iowa.
As part of the deal, RV Retailer paid $3.4 million to buy the Buffalo RV store at 1200 Southwestern Blvd.
Founded 34 years ago by the Strollo family, RV One today is the fifth-largest RV dealer in the country, and the largest in New York state. It sold about 8,000 new and used motorhome and towable vehicles in 2017, with $400 million in annual revenues.
RV Retailer was started this year with backing from Redwood Capital Investments to consolidate major dealers and create a leading player in the industry. It acquired Motor Home Specialist in July and ExploreUSA RV Supercenter in September – gaining the world’s largest RV dealer and the No. 2 dealer in Texas, respectively, with 10 locations in total – before announcing the RV One transaction. It will now have $900 million in total revenues and operations in four states.