Hajoca Buys ABR Wholesalers, Adding Three Upstate New York HVAC Counters

Hajoca, one of the largest privately held wholesale distributors of plumbing, HVAC, pool and industrial supplies in the United States, has acquired ABR Wholesalers, a family-owned HVAC distributor based in Rochester, New York. Financial terms were not disclosed. The deal adds three locations to Hajoca's growing HVAC distribution business in upstate New York.

For distributors, the transaction is a textbook case of regional market entry by acquisition rather than organic buildout. Hajoca gets an established contractor customer base and additional distribution capacity without constructing a regional operation from the ground up — a path that typically takes years and heavy capital before a new counter gains traction with contractors who buy on relationships, not price alone.

Who is ABR Wholesalers?

ABR was founded in 1966 by Jim Monaco and has served HVAC contractors throughout upstate New York for roughly six decades. The company is a true family succession story. Jody Monaco McGarry, the founder's daughter, is CEO. Her husband, Matt McGarry, is president. Their sons, Tommy and Matthew, round out the leadership team.

That continuity matters commercially. HVAC contractors tend to buy from people they know, and a second- and third-generation wholesaler with 60 years of local history carries relationship capital that a national platform cannot simply replicate with a price file.

What stays the same — and why that's deliberate

ABR will retain its name and remain under the management of the McGarry family. Customers will continue working with the same employees and management team, the companies said.

This is the retention playbook that large distributors increasingly favor in fragmented trade channels. Keep the banner, keep the people, keep the counter relationships — and plug the acquired business into the parent's purchasing scale and back-office infrastructure behind the scenes. The acquiring distributor captures gross margin gains through better supplier terms and inventory consolidation, while the acquired distributor keeps the local trust that drives contractor walk-in traffic.

Jody McGarry framed the choice of partner in cultural terms rather than financial ones.

"When we started thinking about the future of ABR, we wanted to partner with a strong independent that shares our passion, culture, and integrity. We found that in Hajoca," she said.

Notably, ABR's owners sought out a "strong independent" — a signal that even successful family wholesalers weighing succession now see alignment with another privately held company, rather than a publicly traded consolidator, as the safer cultural fit.

What the deal signals for wholesale distribution

The acquisition illustrates a broader mechanism in wholesale channel consolidation: larger distributors enter or strengthen regional markets by buying established businesses rather than competing against them head-on. Each acquired location brings trained staff, contractor relationships and inventory positioned close to the customer — assets that translate directly into faster delivery, higher inventory turns on stocked lines and stickier accounts.

Because neither party disclosed the purchase price or revenue figures, the deal's financial scale remains unmeasured; what is asserted is strategic fit, and the structure — name retained, family retained, employees retained — is the disclosed evidence backing that claim.

Hajoca, which distributes plumbing, HVAC, pool and industrial supplies nationally, continues to expand its regional network through exactly this kind of transaction. Expect the company to keep adding established, family-run regional wholesalers as it deepens its HVAC presence across upstate New York and adjacent markets.