One of the Largest and Fastest Growing Containerized Moving and Storage Companies Will Receive $160 Million in Transitional Growth Capital
San Francisco, CA and Wake Forest, NC – Private equity firm Virgo Investment Group (Virgo) today announced that its portfolio company, Zippy Shell Incorporated (Zippy Shell), and its subsidiary 1-800-PACK-RAT, one of the largest containerized moving-and-storage companies in the United States, has secured $160 million in financing from The Carlyle Group’s Global Credit platform and PNC Bank.
The new financing package will provide capital to allow the company to make strategic acquisitions, open more storage locations, invest in its technology, and expand its fleet of storage containers and trucks. The total financing package includes a $65 million first lien ABL from PNC Bank and the previously announced $75 million second lien term loan, plus $20 million preferred equity from Carlyle.
Jesse Watson, Founding Partner of Virgo and Zippy Shell Chairman, said, “Zippy Shell and 1-800-PACK-RAT are strongly positioned for expansion in the moving and storage industry, and we are pleased to partner with both PNC Bank and Carlyle. We believe the overall financing structure is well suited for the company as we enter our next phase of growth.”
Mark Kuhns, Zippy Shell’s Chief Executive Officer, said, “We are excited to be working with both PNC Bank and Carlyle and look forward to working with our partners as we meet rapidly growing needs for simple, safe, convenient moving and storage solutions across the country.”
Gareth Taylor, Zippy Shell’s Founder and President, said, “For the past 10 years, we have been building and partnering with great financial institutions, and we are thrilled to be working with PNC Bank and Carlyle.”
Zippy Shell, founded in 2009, merged with 1-800-PACK-RAT in mid-2018, creating a national network of over 71 warehouse facilities, reaching a total addressable domestic market of 240 million consumers. The company provides an alternative to traditional temporary storage and moving options by delivering containers that are dropped off directly at a customer’s location, filled with their belongings on their schedule and then stored at a drop-off site and/or at a company location, or moved to the destination for unloading by the consumer. Zippy Shell has seen steady growth in demand for its services, particularly long-distance moves and local storage, since its combination with 1-800-PACK-RAT in 2018. 1-800-PACK-RAT was founded in 2002 in North Carolina and has seen impressive growth throughout the years in both residential and commercial markets.
ABOUT VIRGO
Founded in 2009, Virgo is a private investment firm based in the San Francisco Bay Area that has an established track record of building and transforming businesses. Virgo seeks to grow differentiated business models into profitable, industry leading companies. Virgo’s two distinct strategies focus on creating, building and scaling credit/asset-based businesses, and growth equity investments in Founder-led or Family-owned companies where the Firm executes transformative growth. The Firm has raised over $1.8 billion and completed 61 investments to date. For more information, please visit www.virgo-llc.com.
ABOUT ZIPPY SHELL
Zippy Shell was founded in Australia by Gareth Taylor in 2007 and launched in the United States in 2009. They merged with 1-800-PACK-RAT in 2018, and their moving and storage solutions combine the benefits of traditional moving services with the security and convenience of containerized solutions. Their innovative equipment design and flexible service options are delivering on their commitment to make moving and storage simple for both residential and commercial customers. They were recently recognized as one of the fastest growing companies by Inc 5000. To learn more about their services, which include local and long-distance moving, mobile storage, on-site storage, and loading/unloading and packing referral services, visit https://www.zippyshell.com/ or https://www.1800packrat.com.
Media Contacts
Virgo Investment Group
Chris Mezzavilla
Zippy Shell / 1-800-PACK-RAT
Sarah Saulnier
ssaulnier@1800packrat.com