Matthews Rental Firm Acquires a Competitor

Matthews Studio Equipment Group, a Burbank company that rents and sells camera and lighting support equipment to the entertainment industry, said its rental subsidiary has acquired a competitor.

Matthews Studio’s Hollywood Rental Co. Inc. on May 25 acquired Keylite Holdings Inc. and its affiliates, Keylite Production Services Inc., Reel Wheels Inc. and Keylite PSI Phoenix Inc. The acquisition was made through the exchange of 1.4 million restricted shares of Matthews Studio common stock, which are not tradable for two years.

The deal was valued at $4.2 million.

Matthews said the acquisition would enable Hollywood Rental to increase its customer base. The combined inventory of Hollywood Rental and Keylite consists of about 150,000 pieces of equipment, plus production vans, it said.