Dive Brief:

• Colorado-based Apex Waste Solutions recently acquired two companies in the state, Materials Management Co. and All American Disposal. Following those transactions, Apex now services an estimated 75,000 residential customers in the Front Range area, plus commercial and industrial accounts.
• MMC services an estimated 30,000 customers in the Colorado Springs area via hauling operations under the names of Infinite Disposal, Teller County Waste and Chaffee County Waste. All American runs a smaller roll-off hauling operation.
• Private equity firm Kinderhook Industries acquired a stake in Apex late last year. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Dive Insight:

The Denver waste market has seen multiple rounds of consolidation in recent years. Apex launched with a goal of offering new competition while also growing through consolidation of its own.

Members of the current management team, including President Scott Lukach and Chief Operating Officer Scott Jenkins, purchased what was then known as Little Dumpsters in 2021. The company rebranded as Apex in April 2023 before partnering with Kinderhook later in the year.

“Kinderhook’s investment will provide us with the capital and support to further accelerate growth and facilitate opportunities to expand into new markets, pursue strategic add-on acquisitions and add additional service capabilities,” said Lukach in a statement about the transaction, which had not been publicized until this month.

Lukach previously held vice president roles at WCA Waste and Rehrig Pacific. Jenkins was previously the director of Colorado and Utah operations for WM. The company’s CFO, Marshall Stuckey, previously worked at Waste Connections and GFL Environmental.

“The team’s unwavering commitment to customer service, innovation and safety is inspiring and a testament to the company’s mission. With our capital support, we are confident that we will be able to help the team execute on an aggressive growth strategy,” said Rob Michalik, managing director at Kinderhook, in a statement.

Speaking at a recent WasteExpo panel, Lukach said he and the team viewed their 2021 Little Dumpsters purchase as a platform investment. Following that initial transaction, Apex shifted its headquarters to Parker, Colorado, and has been focused on investments such as fleet technology. 

Winning a $13.5 million contract to provide recycling collection for an estimated 27,000 accounts in the city and county of Denver was also a notable milestone. The three-year arrangement, which started in 2023, was described at the time as a way to augment Denver’s efforts to scale up service as a part of a new pay-as-you-throw system.

Lukach said the company’s ability to start that contract with roughly two months notice was “really what put us on the map.” While some others said they couldn’t do it on that time frame, Apex worked with a rental company to source eight trucks.

“Those opportunities are going to come up,” said Lukach, “and if you're willing to react to take a risk it might be the game changer for your company.”

Trying to grow the company during an inflationary period was also complicated. Lukach said this gave him a new appreciation for the open market business, where customers can be “far more sticky than you think” if they receive good service.

“We wanted large franchises, we wanted contracts and reoccurring revenue, all of that, and open market was not what we thought of,” said Lukach. “[Based on] what we’ve experienced with inflation and cost increases, I think the open market residential business is actually a great business."

The MMC acquisition, which was announced in April, expanded Apex’s residential and commercial presence, as well as in portable restrooms. The All American acquisition, announced earlier this month, helped it grow into roll-off services. Apex now runs an estimated 80 trucks out of four operating locations.

WM, Republic Services and Waste Connections all have a notable presence in the market, and have played a leading role in its recent consolidation. Last year, GFL exited the Colorado and New Mexico solid waste markets by divesting assets to Republic, after doing multiple acquisitions of its own. Conversely, Republic has been actively growing in the state, acquiring companies such as Gallegos Sanitation, Monument Waste Services and Rocky Mountain Sanitation. Waste Connections also acquired Springs Waste Systems, among others.

The declining amount of independent waste companies in Colorado Springs led MMC to launch Infinite Disposal in 2022. Now, Apex is looking to be part of that trend by competing with the larger players. Tuck-in acquisitions are a priority for the company, fueled by Kinderhook’s investment, and sources say the market still has further opportunities to purchase.

This marks the latest in a series of waste investments by Kinderhook, including last year’s purchase of Arkansas-based CARDS Recycling. 

Disclosure: WasteExpo is run by Informa, the owner of Waste Dive’s publisher, Industry Dive. Informa has no influence over Waste Dive’s coverage.