John Deere spin-off SiteOne acquires LI wholesale nursery
Bissett Nursery in Holtsville, Aug. 2, 2016. A Georgia company acquired the company. Credit: Ed Betz
SiteOne Landscape Supply LLC, a publicly traded supplier to landscapers, has acquired Bissett Nursery and Bissett Equipment, tristate wholesalers of horticulture products based in Holtsville, the Georgia company announced Tuesday.
Financial terms were not disclosed.
Bissett, whose workforce goes as high as 145 with seasonal employees, is a 53-year-old family business that sells products ranging from grass seed and trees to lawn mowers and trailers to landscapers and municipalities.
Bob Pospischil, president of Bissett Nursery and Bissett Equipment, said Alpharetta-based SiteOne approached the Long Island company.
“The deal has been a little over a year in the making,” he said. “It’s a fragmented industry historically. They’re pulling it together.”
Bruce Newman, president of Ronkonkoma-based Protegrity Advisors LLC, which served as the exclusive selling agent for Bissett, said SiteOne was eager to gain a foothold in the New York City metropolitan area market.
“Both Bissett Nursery and Bissett Equipment are clear market leaders and they complement our existing business in the agronomics, irrigation, and outdoor lighting markets,” Doug Black, chief executive of SiteOne, said in a statement. “Joining forces with the Bissett team makes us the largest supplier of all landscaping supplies, material and equipment to green industry professionals on Long Island and in New York City.”
A SiteOne spokesman said the company plans to maintain Bissett’s two locations in Holtsville and one in Dix Hills, but integrate Bissett’s computer systems in early 2017.
Pospischil said Bissett’s Holtsville nursery site covers 34 acres, its Holtsville equipment site has about 3 1⁄2 acres and its Dix Hills site has about 5 acres.
In 2013, Deere & Company, the maker of agricultural and construction equipment known as John Deere, sold a majority interest in Deere Landscapes to Manhattan private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice LLC.
In October 2015, John Deere Landscapes changed its name to SiteOne and in May 2016 SiteOne went public. Shares of SiteOne closed down 1.8 percent Tuesday to $38.03.
Ken Schachter covers corporate news, including technology and aerospace, and other business topics for Newsday. He has also worked at The Miami Herald and The Jerusalem Post.
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