Orkin bugs out on Gulf Coast

Nationally known pest control firm Orkin is growing on the Gulf Coast with the acquisition of a division of Hulett Environmental Services.

Orkin, in total, bought eight Hulett offices, including the Sarasota and Tampa locations. The other six, part of West Palm Beach-based Hulett's North Florida division, are in the Orlando-Daytona Beach region. Annual revenues for the eight branches exceed $8 million, according to a release. Terms of the deal, which didn't include Hulett's South Florida branches, weren't disclosed.

“We have respected Liz and Tim Hulett and their pest control company for a long time,” Orkin USA President John Wilson says in a release. “The Huletts and their employees have built a business over the past 40 years that enjoys a great reputation in residential, commercial and termite control services across the state.”

Hulett Environmental Services, with more than $35 million in annual revenues, was founded 1968. Orkin, meanwhile, was founded in 1901 and now has 400 locations worldwide, with 8,000 employees and more than 1.5 million customers. Orkin is a subsidiary of Rollins Inc., a publicly traded firm that had $1.2 billion in revenues in 2011.