CollisionRight, a leading consolidator of collision repair shops, has been sold by CenterOak Partners to Summit Partners, according to Tuesday press releases. 

Since its founding in 2022, CollisionRight has acquired 89 collision repair shops throughout the Central and Mid-Atlantic regions in the U.S., a release from Summit Partners said. 

“Partnering with Summit will help CollisionRight enter a new and expanded era of growth,” said CollisionRight CEO Rich Harrison. “Summit’s growth focus and commitment to operational excellence align with our desire to continue to partner with the country’s best shop operators and provide the driving public with timely and high-quality repairs. Our goal is to create an industry leader that will set the standard for growth, excellence, and customer service. We are confident that partnering with Summit will help us to achieve that goal.” 

CenterOak said in its release that it is a private equity firm focused on making investments in middle-market companies. It said this was the company’s “third exit” in the auto aftermarket. 

Summit’s release said it is a global alternative investment firm that’s invested in more than 550 companies. 

“The collision repair industry remains highly fragmented, large and, in our view, very attractive,” Robert Grady, a Summit advisory partner who will join CollisionRight’s Board of Directors, said in the release. “We look forward to working closely with the CollisionRight team to capitalize on this opportunity and enhance the company’s position as a growing, high-quality, customer-focused company.”

CollisionRight said it has “strong relationships” with insurance companies. Those relationships generated approximately 90% of the company’s sales. It notes, in Summit’s release, that it maintains more than 100 direct repair programs with insurance carriers. 

The company averages more than 90,000 repairs annually in nine states, including Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and West Virginia, the release said. 

“The company and its skilled repair technicians aim to provide high-quality, reliable repairs for consumers, using modern technology, paint, and parts, and to be an equally reliable partner to the company’s insurance carrier partners who pay for the overwhelming majority of repairs undertaken by CollisionRight,” the release said. 

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed, both press releases said. 

Five companies did half of the collision industry’s merger and acquisition (M&A) deals in 2023, a Focus Advisors report said. This includes Caliber Collision, The Boyd Group/Gerber Collision, Crash Campions, Classic Collision, and Joe Hudson. 

The companies opened a combined total of 278 shops and acquired more than 550 independent shops last year, the report said. 

Focus Advisors Senior Associate Raul Salinas noted in his Jan. 24 report that the current highly competitive market shows no signs of slowing consolidation momentum going into 2024 — also predicted in October by Opus IVS ADAS Solutions Vice President Frank Terlep and separately in December by The Romans Group.

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