• Founded in 1961, Any Hour is a provider of services to private households
• In July 2021, Any Hour partnered with Knox Lane
• Knox Lane, based in San Francisco, focuses on the consumer and services sectors

Any Hour, which is backed by Knox Lane, has acquired home services companies McQuillan Home Services and Divine Electric. Financial terms were not disclosed.

McQuillan is based in Minnesota, while Divine Electric, which provides electrical and plumbing services, is based in California.

Founded in 1961, Any Hour is a home services provider.

In July 2021, Any Hour partnered with Knox Lane.

Any Hour CEO Wyatt Hepworth said in a statement about the deal: “McQuillan has built a successful business of considerable scale over generations. We are honored that the company has trusted Any Hour to carry on its legacy and look forward to working with them to further expand Any Hour's presence in the Midwest. Divine is another important addition to Any Hour with a strong brand and proven track record.”

Knox Lane is based in San Francisco and focuses on the consumer and services sectors.

The post Knox Lane-backed Any Hour snaps up house companies corporations McQuillan and Divine Electrical appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

The latest North Bay Business Journal research (Lists.NorthBayBusinessJournal.com) focuses on firms with local offices that design and implement technologies, equipment and processes to deal with contamination and environmental impact.

The list of environmental consulting and engineering firms is ranked by 2020 North Bay environmental billings. Other information provided includes annual environmental billings companywide, number of employees and professionals with advanced degrees, number of North Bay offices, year established, percentage of work in various categories, services offered, North Bay 2019-2020 projects, and top local executive.

Detailed information from the list is available for purchase as a spreadsheet via the links above.

Want to have your company surveyed for this and other lists? Contact Research Director Michelle Fox at michelle.fox@busjrnl.com or call 707-526-8682.

The post Environmental engineering and consulting companies in San Francisco North Bay appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

SAN FRANCISCO – (BUSINESS WIRE) – Grant Thornton LLP, a leading accounting, tax and advisory firm, has appointed Melanie Krygier to lead growth in private equity tax. Krygier, a San Francisco-based partner and head of Grant Thornton’s M&A Tax Services West Coast Practice, will join the private equity leadership team and will focus on assisting private equity clients with mergers and acquisitions (M&A).

“Melanie’s exceptional tax knowledge and long history of helping private equity investors and their portfolio companies through M&A will be incredibly valuable to every client she works with,” said Carlos Ferreira, Grant Thornton’s National Managing Partner of Private Equity. “The private equity space is constantly evolving, and the pandemic has only accelerated that development. This space requires the creative, self-confident and determined leadership that Melanie offers. ”

Krygier has more than 15 years of experience serving public and private companies in a variety of industries. After seven successful years with another national consulting firm, she moved to Grant Thornton in 2013. For almost 10 years she mainly focused on advising on M&A. Specifically, Krygier has carried out due diligence on the buyer and seller side as well as tax structuring and modeling for customers who are considering potential sales, purchases or restructuring.

Krygier has also assisted clients navigating tax-free restructurings, particularly those related to special purpose vehicle (SPAC) transactions. Her in-depth transactional knowledge will be beneficial to companies that need a skilled hand to guide them through the often complex tax implications of a merger or acquisition.

According to a recent M&A survey conducted by Grant Thornton, the surge in SPACs is likely to continue. Additionally, the recent surge in M&A activity could be a catalyst for new challenges, including a new type of earnout dispute. These results show the importance of a skilled executive like Krygier.

“As M&A activity becomes more prevalent, it is critical for any business to get the most value from what can be a very complex and labor-intensive process,” said Rimma Tabakh, executive partner at Grant Thornton’s San Francisco office. “Melanie will provide detailed and reliable guidance at a time when companies need her more than ever.”

“She is an inspiring and highly collaborative professional,” continued Tabakh, “who will nurture all of our team members in San Francisco and be a valuable role model for women in a historically male-dominated space.”

In this new management position, Krygier succeeds Chris Schenkenberg, who, as the national managing partner of Regional Tax Business Lines, has taken on a new role for the firm’s tax leadership team. Krygier earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Michigan State University.

“Melanie is a talented and knowledgeable leader with an innate ability to boldly break new ground and have an immediate and lasting impact on professional services,” said Renato Zanichelli, Grant Thornton’s National Managing Partner of Tax Services. “Her track record in delivering powerful business solutions and effective tax strategies makes her the perfect person to lead this team and help our clients succeed.”

To learn more about Grant Thornton’s private equity and M&A services, visit www.grantthornton.com/industries/private-equity and www.grantthornton.com/services/advisory-services/mergers-and-acquisitions.

About Grant Thornton LLP

Grant Thornton LLP (Grant Thornton) was founded in Chicago in 1924 and is the US member firm of Grant Thornton International Ltd, one of the world’s leading organizations of independent accounting, tax and consulting firms. Grant Thornton, with sales of $ 1.97 billion and more than 50 offices, works with a variety of dynamic public and private corporations, government agencies, financial institutions, and civil and religious organizations.

“Grant Thornton” refers to Grant Thornton LLP, the US member firm of Grant Thornton International Ltd (GTIL). GTIL and the member companies are not a global partnership. The services are provided by the member companies. GTIL and its member firms are not agents and do not undertake or be liable for any acts or omissions of the other. More information is available at grantthornton.com.

The post Grant Thornton names San Francisco Associate Melanie Krygier because the agency’s Personal Fairness Tax Development chief appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

Home service companies Alfred Club Inc., TaskRabbit Inc., and Shef Inc. have appointed in-house judges as the Biden government is considering working rules that could change the way the gig economy works.

Alfred, who provides concierge services to apartment buildings and landlords, has hired Matthew Kane as General Counsel. He joins Alfred from Z Capital Group LLC, where he served as Managing Director, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer.

TaskRabbit, a mobile workforce provider founded in 2017 by Swedish household goods giant Ikea Group Corp. was acquired, hired new General Counsel Benjamin Edelhart this month, who most recently served as Senior Director, Legal and Corporate Products at Uber Technologies Inc.

Shef, an on-demand cooking company that has dubbed itself “Airbnb for groceries,” hired Danielle Merida as general counsel. She comes to Shef from TaskRabbit.

The internal additions come when the Biden government thinks about a new labor policy. The Department of Labor last month removed a Trump-era rule that would have made it easier for companies to legally view workers as independent contractors. The repeal enables the Biden administration to decide whether the federal wage law applies to gig companies.

Alfred

Alfred, also known as Hello Alfred, confirmed Kane’s hiring in an email to Bloomberg Law. He comes after the company announced last month the acquisition of HOM, a convenience and community service provider that Alfred reportedly expects to help expand into commercial buildings.

The HOM deal, the value of which was not disclosed, comes after Alfred closed a $ 42 million financing round last October, organized by the family office of the former co-founder of WeWork Cos. Inc. Adam Neumann and several previous investors.

Alfred differs from his contemporaries in the gig economy in that he classifies his workers as employees rather than independent contractors. Bloomberg Law reported this year on Alfred’s decision to introduce a full employment model for those who deliver groceries, do laundry and handle maintenance requests for their customers.

“Any of the 1099 platform companies currently running can be change agents by coming around the table to see how to balance the need for great jobs with a business model that works well on Wall Street,” said Marcela Sapone, co-founder and Alfred CEO, in an interview with Bloomberg Law earlier this year. “There is a really sustainable business model at Uber and it’s hidden in companies like TaskRabbit.”

Alfred is a separate entity from Stay Alfred Inc., a Spokane Valley, Washington-based hospitality startup that hired a new legal chief in early 2020, only to go bankrupt a few months later due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Alfred, other than confirming his hiring of Kane for his newly created General Counsel role, did not respond to a request for comment from his outside legal counsel. According to public filings, the company turned to Fenwick & West for branding work.

Z Capital declined to comment on Kane’s departure. Kane spent nearly seven years with the privately held investment manager who promoted him to Chief Legal and Compliance two years ago. Z Capital hired Erik Kreutzer, associate of Goodwin Procter, as director and assistant general counsel in New York last month.

Earlier this month, Z Capital announced that it would merge two of its portfolio companies, Affinity Gaming LLC and Sports Information Group LLC, to create a new company valued at $ 1.3 billion, including debt. Sidley Austin and Massumi + Consoli are advising Affinity and SIG respectively on the transaction.

TaskRabbit

Founded in 2008 and based in San Francisco, TaskRabbit operates an online marketplace for errands and other one-time jobs performed by freelance workers.

Edelhart, a 21-year-old legal veteran at Visa Inc. before joining Uber in mid-2018, didn’t respond to a request for comment on his move to TaskRabbit.

In a LinkedIn post this week revealing his new job, Edelhart said he looks forward to joining the TaskRabbit executive and legal team as we help this incredible company solve everyday problems for consumers, taskers and retailers to solve”.

TaskRabbit spokeswoman Ariel Rothbard confirmed Edelhart’s hiring to succeed Merida, whose departure in April after Shef prompted the company to appoint in-house attorney Marjan Mashhadi as deputy general counsel. Mashhadi has now returned to her previous role as director of law, Rothbard said.

Mashhadi, a former Morgan, Lewis & Bockius employee who once served as the director of industrial relations for the city of New Haven, Connecticut, where she earned an MBA from Yale University, was hired by Merida at TaskRabbit in 2019.

Merida, who spent five years at TaskRabbit, began her career working at Bingham McCutchen, most of which was taken over by Morgan Lewis.

cook

Shef was founded in 2019 by Alvand “Alvin” Salehi, a lawyer and former White House chief technology advisor, and former Facebook Inc. employee Joey Grassia.

Salehi confirmed in an email that Merida has come on board as the first General Counsel and Head of People. Merida recently announced jobs at Shef on LinkedIn for a Senior Counsel and Head of Global Politics and Government Affairs.

Since the company’s inception, Salehi and Grassia have expanded business to seven markets – the Bay Area, Boston, Chicago, Houston, New York, Seattle, and Austin, Texas. Earlier this month, Shef closed a $ 20 million financing round led by venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.

Other investors in Shef include technology incubator Y Combinator, M13 Ventures Management LLC, celebrity chef Aarón Sánchez, professional basketball player Andre Iguodala and other well-known figures such as Padma Lakshmi, Tiffany Haddish, Katy Perry and his fiancé Orlando Bloom.

In a LinkedIn post earlier this month, Salehi, a first-generation American, said he was “deeply grateful” to those who support Shef, and recalled that he and Grassia stayed at the from a one-bedroom apartment in Washington DC Idea for the company worked.

Salehi, who was also a research partner at Harvard Law School’s Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society, said in his email that Shef uses a variety of outside law firms, depending on the company’s needs.

Public records indicate that Holland & Hart is doing branding for the San Francisco-based company Shef, which has been scrutinized by outside chefs for its use of third-party chefs.

The post House Providers Corporations Add Authorized Assist as Biden Ponders Labor Change appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

Home service companies Alfred Club Inc., TaskRabbit Inc., and Shef Inc. have appointed in-house judges as the Biden government is considering working rules that could change the way the gig economy works.

Alfred, who provides concierge services to apartment buildings and landlords, has hired Matthew Kane as General Counsel. He joins Alfred from Z Capital Group LLC, where he served as Managing Director, General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer.

TaskRabbit, a mobile workforce provider founded in 2017 by Swedish household goods giant Ikea Group Corp. was acquired, hired new General Counsel Benjamin Edelhart this month, who most recently served as Senior Director, Legal and Corporate Products at Uber Technologies Inc.

Shef, an on-demand cooking company that has dubbed itself “Airbnb for groceries,” hired Danielle Merida as general counsel. She comes to Shef from TaskRabbit.

The internal additions come when the Biden government thinks about a new labor policy. The Department of Labor last month removed a Trump-era rule that would have made it easier for companies to legally view workers as independent contractors. The repeal enables the Biden administration to decide whether the federal wage law applies to gig companies.

Alfred

Alfred, also known as Hello Alfred, confirmed Kane’s hiring in an email to Bloomberg Law. He comes after the company announced last month the acquisition of HOM, a convenience and community service provider that Alfred reportedly expects to help expand into commercial buildings.

The HOM deal, the value of which was not disclosed, comes after Alfred closed a $ 42 million financing round last October, organized by the family office of the former co-founder of WeWork Cos. Inc. Adam Neumann and several previous investors.

Alfred differs from his contemporaries in the gig economy in that he classifies his workers as employees rather than independent contractors. Bloomberg Law reported this year on Alfred’s decision to introduce a full employment model for those who deliver groceries, do laundry and handle maintenance requests for their customers.

“Any of the 1099 platform companies currently running can be change agents by coming around the table to see how to balance the need for great jobs with a business model that works well on Wall Street,” said Marcela Sapone, co-founder and Alfred CEO, in an interview with Bloomberg Law earlier this year. “There is a really sustainable business model at Uber and it’s hidden in companies like TaskRabbit.”

Alfred is a separate entity from Stay Alfred Inc., a Spokane Valley, Washington-based hospitality startup that hired a new legal chief in early 2020, only to go bankrupt a few months later due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Alfred, other than confirming his hiring of Kane for his newly created General Counsel role, did not respond to a request for comment from his outside legal counsel. According to public filings, the company turned to Fenwick & West for branding work.

Z Capital declined to comment on Kane’s departure. Kane spent nearly seven years with the privately held investment manager who promoted him to Chief Legal and Compliance two years ago. Z Capital hired Erik Kreutzer, associate of Goodwin Procter, as director and assistant general counsel in New York last month.

Earlier this month, Z Capital announced that it would merge two of its portfolio companies, Affinity Gaming LLC and Sports Information Group LLC, to create a new company valued at $ 1.3 billion, including debt. Sidley Austin and Massumi + Consoli are advising Affinity and SIG respectively on the transaction.

TaskRabbit

Founded in 2008 and based in San Francisco, TaskRabbit operates an online marketplace for errands and other one-time jobs performed by freelance workers.

Edelhart, a 21-year-old legal veteran at Visa Inc. before joining Uber in mid-2018, didn’t respond to a request for comment on his move to TaskRabbit.

In a LinkedIn post this week revealing his new job, Edelhart said he looks forward to joining the TaskRabbit executive and legal team as we help this incredible company solve everyday problems for consumers, taskers and retailers to solve”.

TaskRabbit spokeswoman Ariel Rothbard confirmed Edelhart’s hiring to succeed Merida, whose departure in April after Shef prompted the company to appoint in-house attorney Marjan Mashhadi as deputy general counsel. Mashhadi has now returned to her previous role as director of law, Rothbard said.

Mashhadi, a former Morgan, Lewis & Bockius employee who once served as the director of industrial relations for the city of New Haven, Connecticut, where she earned an MBA from Yale University, was hired by Merida at TaskRabbit in 2019.

Merida, who spent five years at TaskRabbit, began her career working at Bingham McCutchen, most of which was taken over by Morgan Lewis.

cook

Shef was founded in 2019 by Alvand “Alvin” Salehi, a lawyer and former White House chief technology advisor, and former Facebook Inc. employee Joey Grassia.

Salehi confirmed in an email that Merida has come on board as the first General Counsel and Head of People. Merida recently announced jobs at Shef on LinkedIn for a Senior Counsel and Head of Global Politics and Government Affairs.

Since the company’s inception, Salehi and Grassia have expanded business to seven markets – the Bay Area, Boston, Chicago, Houston, New York, Seattle, and Austin, Texas. Earlier this month, Shef closed a $ 20 million financing round led by venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.

Other investors in Shef include technology incubator Y Combinator, M13 Ventures Management LLC, celebrity chef Aarón Sánchez, professional basketball player Andre Iguodala and other well-known figures such as Padma Lakshmi, Tiffany Haddish, Katy Perry and his fiancé Orlando Bloom.

In a LinkedIn post earlier this month, Salehi, a first-generation American, said he was “deeply grateful” to those who support Shef, and recalled that he and Grassia stayed at the from a one-bedroom apartment in Washington DC Idea for the company worked.

Salehi, who was also a research partner at Harvard Law School’s Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society, said in his email that Shef uses a variety of outside law firms, depending on the company’s needs.

Public records indicate that Holland & Hart is doing branding for the San Francisco-based company Shef, which has been scrutinized by outside chefs for its use of third-party chefs.

The post Residence Providers Corporations Add Authorized Assist as Biden Ponders Labor Change appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.

PACE Supply goes beyond supplying plumbing companies with the acquisition of three Northern California companies.

The Rohnert Park-based company, which until then had 25 locations in California and Hawaii, acquired JW Wood Co. Inc., Northern Industrial Sales and All Air Supply effective January 1. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed in the announcement Tuesday.

“Part of PACE Supply’s strategy is to expand our capabilities and expand our geographic presence,” said President Keith Hubbard in the press release. “JW Wood is a testament to their passionate people and has built a reputation for excellent customer service. It fits in perfectly with our organization. We are honored to have their family members in our family and we look forward to serving our customers. “

The deal includes four locations in California: Redding, Chico, Susanville and Yuba City. The first two have sanitary showrooms.

JW Wood, a family business founded in 1954, provides plumbing, HVAC, irrigation, and industrial services in northern California and southern Oregon.

“My brother Kellie and I were fortunate enough to learn the wholesale plumbing business from one of the best, our father Wes Wood, the founder of JW Wood,” said former President John Wood. “We worked for JW Wood when we were young. When it came time to retire, our focus was on finding a buyer who would be a good fit with our family, employees, customers, and the communities we have served for the past 67 years. PACE Supply is that company. “

Brad Williams of Beringer Group represented JW Wood on the transaction.

Pace Supply was founded in 1994 and is employee owned. Prior to this deal, it had 20 wholesale locations and four Premier Bath & Kitchen showrooms.

The post PACE Provide buys three Northern California corporations, expands into HVAC and industrial appeared first on Los Gatos News And Events.