Franchise Group acquires W.S. Badcock Corp.

DELAWARE, Ohio — Franchise Group Inc. has completed the acquisition of W.S. Badcock Corp., a leading home furnishings company in the Southeast U.S., in an all cash transaction valued at approximately $580 million.

Founded in 1904, W.S. Badcock Corp. operates 383 stores in eight Southeastern states, with 68 corporate locations and 315 independent dealer-owned stores. The stores are branded Badcock Home Furniture & more and carry furniture, appliances, bedding, electronics, home office equipment, accessories and seasonal items.

“Protecting the legacy of our 117-year-old family-owned business, which has been grown through five generations, our relationships with customers, vendors, dealers, employees, and our deep ties to the local communities in which we operate, have always been of utmost important to us,” said Bill Pou Jr., chairman of the board of W.S. Badcock Corp.  M

“We wanted to find a buyer who would respect our company’s long and storied history, and in Franchise Group, we immediately recognized a management group and a company that shared our values and will help W.S. Badcock build upon the legacy created by the current family and those who preceded us,” he continued. “We are confident that we are leaving our treasured company in good hands and that this decision will help to produce a winning combination for our customers, vendors, dealers and employees.”

Brian Kahn, president and CEO of Franchise Group, said, “A sincere thank you to the Badcock family for entrusting their 117-year legacy to Franchise Group. We are very excited to welcome the Badcock management team, employees, dealers and customers to Franchise Group.

“Besides potential significant standalone earnings accretion for the Company, the addition of Badcock adds scale to, and anticipated synergies with our existing home furnishings franchise concepts, which we are confident will specifically benefit American Freight and Buddy’s franchisees and customers.”

Kahn noted Badcock’s long history in three discrete business lines: a retail footprint consisting of 383 locations; a real estate portfolio consisting of three distribution centers, 38 retail locations, and 27 corporate and certain other locations; and a consumer credit business that currently includes approximately $550 million of gross receivables.

For Badcock’s fiscal year end June 3, the retail company generated consolidated revenue of approximately $901.9 million and adjusted EBITDA of approximately $139.5 million.

Franchise Group believes that Badcock’s consolidated adjusted EBITDA for its last fiscal year benefited indirectly by up to $50 million due to its customers receiving COVID-19 related government stimulus payments in 2021.

Franchise Group is completing its 2022 budgeting process and will provide its 2022 financial outlook, as well as additional details regarding Badcock in the first half of December 2021.

J.P. Morgan arranged for $575 million in new term loans to finance the Transaction. Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP, Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders LLP and DLA Piper LLP served as legal counsel to Franchise Group. Mann, Armistead & Epperson, Ltd. served as financial advisor and Trenam Law as legal counsel to W.S. Badcock Corp.

Franchise Group is an owner and operator of franchised and franchisable businesses with brands including Pet Supplies Plus, American Freight, The Vitamin Shoppe, Badcock Home Furniture & more, Buddy’s Home Furnishings and Sylvan Learning.