Arvore Flags Texas as Key Play in Founder Retirements

Arvore Partners says a wave of founder retirements is creating a major lower-middle-market buying opportunity, with Texas at the center of the shift. The firm is expanding its North American consolidation model into the U.S. as it targets succession-driven deals among small and mid-sized companies.

Why it matters: - Arvore Partners is framing founder retirements as a long-duration succession event, not a short-term deal cycle. - The firm says the shift could reshape who owns and operates thousands of small and mid-sized businesses across North America. - Texas stands out in Arvore’s view because it combines a large founder-owned business base with ongoing population and job growth.

What happened: - Omnigence Asset Management announced a new market report from its affiliated platform Arvore Partners LP on September 2, 2026. - The report examines the “silver tsunami” of founder and family-business retirements across North America. - Arvore says the Texas lower middle market is one of the clearest expressions of that trend in the U.S.

The details: - The report says roughly 12 million U.S. businesses are owned by baby boomers. - Arvore cites an estimated $10 trillion in enterprise value that is expected to change hands over the coming years. - Analysts project about 6 million U.S. business ownership transitions by 2035. - The middle market includes about 200,000 companies and accounts for tens of millions of U.S. jobs. - Arvore argues that capital and operating talent are concentrated at the top of the market, where large buyouts attract the most attention. - The lower middle market, defined in the report as companies with about $1 million to $10 million in EBITDA, remains comparatively undercapitalized. - Many retiring founders in that segment do not have a natural succession path, the report says. - The firm says the large majority of U.S. buyout activity in 2025 came from add-on acquisitions. - Founder-led businesses are often bought through direct relationships rather than auctions, according to the report. - Arvore says disciplined consolidation can preserve continuity for employees, customers and local communities. - The report identifies Texas as one of the largest founder-owned business economies in North America. - Arvore describes the Texas lower middle market as a concentrated version of the continent-wide succession pattern. - Stephen Johnston, partner at Arvore and a director of Omnigence, said there are far more businesses coming up for transition than experienced operators ready to run them. - Johnston said the report was written to describe the issue as a question of stewardship and investment opportunity. - Arvore says it has acquired, integrated and operated founder-led businesses since 2013, including through its predecessor. - The company says its portfolio now spans more than 200 locations across five verticals: building-products distribution, environmental services, automotive maintenance, master franchisors and light industrial. - Arvore says its EquiONE operating platform integrates newly acquired companies in about eight weeks and monitors thousands of operational metrics in real time. - Arvore says its team includes more than 30 investment and operating professionals. - The firm says it is extending its North American consolidation model into the U.S., starting with Texas. - The market report is available on request from Arvore Partners. - Media and interested readers can contact the firm using the details provided in the announcement. - More information is available on the company's LinkedIn page.

Between the lines: - The report is also a pitch for Arvore’s investing model, which combines acquisition, integration and hands-on operations. - Texas is being positioned as an early test case for whether lower-middle-market consolidation can scale in the U.S. the way Arvore says it has elsewhere. - The emphasis on stewardship suggests Arvore is trying to make succession investing sound operationally necessary, not just financially attractive.

What's next: - Arvore says it will keep pushing its consolidation strategy in the United States, with Texas as the initial focus. - The firm is likely to use the report to source founder-led businesses facing ownership transitions. - The size of the succession wave will determine how much opportunity opens up for buyers with operating capacity.

The bottom line: - Arvore is betting that the coming wave of retirements will create a broad opening in the lower middle market, and that Texas offers one of the best places to prove the case.