LRS acquires two Midwest portable restroom providers

LRS, among the nation's leading independent waste diversion, recycling and portable services providers, has acquired two portable restroom providers for its LRS Portables line of business: Stillwater, Minnesota-based AirFresh Industries and Warsaw, Indiana-based JL Hurt.

The acquisitions complement the Springfield, Illinois-based company's existing operations in the high-growth Minneapolis-St. Paul and northern Indiana markets. Financial terms were not disclosed and the acquisitions are effective immediately.

“I am thrilled to welcome both AirFresh and JL Hurt employees, customers and legacy founders to the LRS family. Both companies have built their success by sharing in our core values of safety and service excellence, a relentless focus on the customer experience and raw entrepreneurial spirit, making these acquisitions a seamless transition for all parties,” LRS President and CEO Alan T. Handley says. “We are especially excited to announce all founders—Kelly Thommes, Tim Thommes and Justin Hurt—have joined LRS in senior operations positions, helping catapult LRS Portables toward continued market leadership.”

Founded in 1987, AirFresh Industries President Kelly Thommes and her husband, Vice President of Operations Tim Thommes, built AirFresh into a regional provider of portable restroom services. The company serves the entire Twin Cities metro area, surrounding counties, and locations in western Wisconsin. AirFresh has built a reputation for customer service that outperforms industry standards and is strategically positioned to add scale to LRS Minnesota operations.

AirFresh complements existing LRS Minnesota operations, consolidating the 2021 acquisitions of North Branch, Minnesota, portables provider Jimmys Johnnys and Minneapolis-based Atomic Recycling, the largest provider of construction and demolition (C&D) recycling and roll-off container services in the Twin Cities area. The addition of AirFresh positions LRS as a one-stop-shop for all waste and portable restroom needs in the Twin Cities.

JL Hurt was acquired simultaneously to AirFresh, spotlighting the LRS commitment to growth across all core waste services in the Midwest. With a rich service history in northern Indiana, Owner Justin Hurt started his company with two portable restroom units and a pick-up truck, ultimately building dense market share through a loyal customer following across 10 northern Indiana counties.

The acquisition of JL Hurt adds scale to three prior regional LRS acquisitions: roll-off and transfer station provider Junoll Services, South Bend, Indiana; portables provider Johnson Johns, Kingsbury, Indiana; and Joys Johns, Niles, Michigan, setting the stage for continued growth across the greater Midwest.

AirFresh and JL Hurt are LRS' seventh and eighth announced acquisitions to-date in 2022. Other announcements include Lakes Disposal, Grayslake, Illinois; The Country Plumber, Portage, Wisconsin; Ditch & Associates, Topeka, Kansas; Sunshine Sanitation, Rochester, Minnesota; Auburn Disposal, Chicago; and Junoll Services, South Bend, Indiana. In 2021, the company amassed 22 acquisitions to complement its organic revenue growth across the nation's midsection.