Gro-Well Brands

The story of Gro-Well Brands isn't about a single founder but about the fusion of established regional players. In 2006, a significant merger took place, combining Western Organics, a 48-year-old lawn and garden manufacturer in the Southwest, with Benick Brands, a major East Coast distributor. This strategic union created Gro-Well Brands, Inc., a company focused on environmentally friendly and sustainable products for the garden industry. The company didn't stop there; in the same year, it acquired Sierra Organics to bolster its manufacturing and delivery capabilities on the West Coast. The company’s playbook focused on a specific niche: producing and marketing natural and organic lawn and garden products. A core part of their model involves recycling green waste, wood, and food waste, using a proprietary composting process to create organic soils, mulches, and composts from materials that would otherwise go to landfills. This sustainable approach allowed them to build a portfolio of recognizable brands like Garden Time, Nature's Way, and Arizona's Best. A pivotal chapter in the Gro-Well story unfolded in June 2017 when the company was acquired by Global Environment Fund (GEF), a private equity firm. This wasn't a hostile takeover but a partnership. The existing management team, including Alan Langer, David Hancock, and Tim Sellew, remained to work with GEF to expand the business and launch new products. Under this new ownership, Gro-Well continued its growth trajectory, acquiring Pacific Topsoils in 2020 to strengthen its presence in the Pacific Northwest. This series of mergers and acquisitions has solidified Gro-Well's position as a major player in the organic garden products sector in the Western United States.