Adams Outdoor Chief Legal Officer Rich Zecchino and General Manager – Ohio Valley Market Theresa Mitchell did an interview on the Barnes and Oliver Outdoor acquisitions which was published on the Adams Outdoor blog. Some of the highlights.
Zechinno on the acquisitions
Barnes and Oliver’s Ohio and Pennsylvania inventory…add 1,040 structures to the Adams footprint. That’s 72 digital displays, 968 static bulletins and posters, all rolled into one regional market.
To put that in context, Adams was already the nation’s fourth-largest out-of-home company. This deal brings us to more than 12,000 billboard faces across 14 states. We have a strong Midwest footprint and strong mid-Atlantic operations, and this inventory nestled across the Ohio Valley River Basin creates a bridge allowing us to offer even more comprehensive coverage for our customers.
Each company was represented by a broker in this process—Barnes was represented by Marty Williamson and Amber Williamson Galunas from Williamson & Associates, and Oliver was represented by Max Drachman from Drachman M&A, Co—I can’t thank them enough for their persistence, patience, partnership throughout this process. And I want to personally thank the owners of Barnes, MaryJane and John, and the owners of Oliver, Jerry and Jaymie, for the trust they placed in us. All of this doesn’t happen without good-faith partners on the other side of the table.
When you’re going through an acquisition — or two, you’re really acquiring decades of relationships and hard work that someone else built. Both Barnes and Oliver had spent years earning the trust of their respective customers and communities, so this was never about coming in and flipping a switch. It was about understanding what they’d built and making sure we protected it as we built the new Adams market. The goal was to get to the close with everyone feeling good about where this was headed, not just the paperwork signed. In my opinion, we did that.
Theresa Mitchell on market’s appeal
These are really great markets – fast growth, exciting industrial and economic development on the horizon, major traffic-heavy corridors connecting all of it. Looking into these counties, you’ve got a lot of new people with fresh spending power, forming their buying habits right now.
Everything funnels through a few unavoidable interstate pathways, like the I-70/I-77 interchange near Cambridge – I believe the count is over 90,000 vehicles passing through there daily. There’s no way around it, so the same commuters, tourists, and freight drivers pass the same billboards day after day. That repetition is what builds loyal customers.
Then, Western PA rounds it out. That inventory reaches across the wider Pittsburgh DMA, anchored north and east of the city in towns like Butler, Kittanning, and New Castle, right where a lot of the growth is landing. Put it together and a brand can run digital and static billboards across the whole Columbus-to-Pittsburgh corridor.
What the sale means for employees and customers
My first priority is the people. We’re gaining new team members from the local staff, people who know these roads, these markets, and I’m excited to dive further into the work with these exceptional teams. The passion the staff has for the area and the business is awe-inspiring. Look at Barnes Advertising who has been a family-owned business since 1916. It’s an honor to carry on the next chapter of that legacy. My job is to back both our new employees and clients with Adams’ full team, technology, and scale to get them integrated and welcomed into the company.
If you’ve been advertising with either company, the simplest next step is to ask your rep what’s now available across the full network. We’re excited to support our clients with a bigger bench and the services and support we’re proud of here at Adams. We can connect you with our in-house team of billboard designers, our programmatic digital out-of-home strategy team, and long-tenured staff for your billboard advertising strategy.
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