Private equity firms descend on local roofing companies

Search “roofer” online, and you’ll see just how saturated the market is in Southwest Washington and the Portland metro area. The region is known for being highly competitive in that industry. But that hasn’t stopped private equity firms from moving in. Private equity firms, which buy companies to sell later at a profit, started acquiring roofing companies during the pandemic. Acquisitions surged in the years that followed. Investors see potential in the industry given America’s aging housing stock, extreme weather necessitating roof repairs and replacements, and the dominance of small-scale operators. The acquisitions are most prevalent in the Southeast, Midwest and Northeast. But a handful of Portland-area companies have partnered with private equity in the past several years, according to a Columbian analysis. “The Pacific Northwest is a thriving market with a distinct character and strong demand for high-quality roofing services,” Greg Weller, CEO at Atlanta-based, private equity-backed roofing company Alloy, said in a 2025 news release announcing Alloy’s acquisition of Ridgefield’s IBEX Roof. “It’s a region we’ve admired for some time, and entering it with a partner like IBEX — who knows the market, the customers, and the communities so well — makes this moment even more meaningful,” Weller said. Kirk Koskiniemi, who owned IBEX Roof before the acquisition, said the partnership would provide the company with additional resources, technology and growth opportunities. “We remain focused on delivering the same high-quality, customer-focused service our clients expect, while positioning the business for long-term growth and success,” Koskiniemi said in the news release. Wendy Marvin, who owns Vancouver-based Matrix Roofing, said the growing local trend makes her nervous. Marvin said some private equity-backed roofing companies are left intact, with the new partners simply giving the company more resources and buying power. But others, she fears, prioritize profits — acquiring companies with a good reputation, changing or underbidding contracts and potentially using subpar materials or laborers. Or, as Marvin put it: “Profit-based companies that are more sales organizations that happen to install roofs.” Marvin said her company prioritizes relationships and taking care of customers. “I think that betrayal of the customers is just so frustrating,” she said. Private equity dalliances in contracting haven’t always gone well. A BlackRock-backed East Coast remodeling conglomerate went bust last fall, leaving its subsidiary employees without jobs or pay, according to The New York Times. The newspaper reported top employees left after cost cutting undermined quality. Demand slowed with higher interest rates. Bliss Roofing is based in Clackamas, Ore., but works on roofs throughout the Portland metro area. The company was founded locally in 1969 and acquired by a private equity firm, Vertex Service Partners, in 2024. Zak Pantaleo, area president for Bliss Roofing, said that for the most part, Bliss is the same company it was before the acquisition. The company has consolidated some services with Vertex — areas like human resources and marketing. Pantaleo said the company still has a lot of the same faces around the office, however, in addition to some new ones. “In many ways, it’s still the same company it has been, and in other ways, it certainly has changed,” Pantaleo said. “But we think it’s changed holistically for the better.” Vertex brought the roofing company a client relationship-management system to help better track what’s being done for customers, including photos of the job and materials used. Vertex also provided Bliss a digitally managed fleet system for the company’s roughly 100 vehicles, offering reminders for maintenance items like oil changes and tire-pressure checks. Pantaleo said private equity also has helped Bliss implement benefits packages and competitive salaries, as well as opportunities for internal promotions. “I’ve had the pleasure of promoting three internal Bliss employees to management over the past year, which has been incredibly rewarding,” Pantaleo said. “Vertex has created those opportunities for them.” Bliss also has been able to continue doing charity work, providing free roofs to families in need and charitable organizations. Vertex hasn’t changed Bliss’ roofing practices directly, only implementing practices with downstream impacts. For example, Pantaleo said the company has safer equipment, better training materials and marketing initiatives to help Bliss find more work. “It’s a tough economy right now,” Pantaleo said. “The roofing industry has seen a decline across the nation, and we’ve been able to maintain some strength and maintain jobs for our crews.” Material costs have skyrocketed in the industry in recent years. Marvin said roofs that she would have replaced for $7,000 or $8,000 a decade ago are now costing closer to $30,000. Pantaleo said Bliss sees constant price increases from suppliers and distributors. Shingles are expensive and becoming more so, he said. Pantaleo knows many private equity firms have famously cut costs, not just in construction but in other industries as well. Vertex and the entire roofing industry are sensitive to it, he said. Vertex, Pantaleo said, isn’t trying to create a stronger and more profitable company by spending less. “We’re going to streamline our systems and processes, and we’re going to do better with what we have and increase our capabilities along the way,” he said. The company, for instance, is able to get better negotiated prices for stronger materials because of Vertex’s buying power. Some companies faced with rapidly rising supply costs have switched to cheaper materials, Pantaleo said. That isn’t the case for Bliss, which Pantaleo said was sought out for purchase because of its quality work. And the company plans to keep that reputation. “Vertex doesn’t have a one-year plan,” he said. “They have a longer plan of success and growth, and it’s pretty tough to do that if we’re playing a very short game.” The long game for Marvin centers on ensuring there are still locally owned options for customers. “We want to try to do what we can to keep the market competitive to make sure that customers have a choice,” Marvin said. She also wants to help educate customers about how to read contracts to avoid getting trapped into agreements they can’t get out of. Pantaleo said Bliss’ contracts haven’t changed much since Vertex came on board, though it does account for changes to the scope of work if unexpected issues arise and it offers longer warranties. “We discuss that with homeowners during the initial contract phase,” Pantaleo said. “We also discuss it with our homeowners during pre-job inspections.” Marvin thinks private equity is just getting started in roofing. She gets 15 to 20 offers a month from firms wanting to buy her business, she said. “They started about three years ago when they finally recognized that roofing actually is a profitable trade,” Marvin said.

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