Mystified, a renowned Mystic, CT escape room business, announced on December 31, 2020 that Michael McDonald has acquired substantially all of the assets of the company from its current owners, Shelly and Brian Wilson. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Since the first escape room locked its doors in 2007 and challenged people to get out, the industry has expanded globally and gained tremendous popularity in the United States. Mystified LLC, a family-operated business, opened its doors in July 2016 under the name Mystified Escape Rooms. The owners, Shelly and Brian Wilson, were introduced to the exciting, joyful, teambuilding experience of looking for hidden clues and solving puzzles during their family vacations and developed a love of escape rooms. Genuinely enjoying the challenge and wanting to share the excitement with the people of Mystic, CT, they brought their unique signature to the business. They also were quick to realize the amazing potential of the then new but fast spreading business model.
“Mystified has been a highly-rated, well-known and popular business that has been one of the main tourist attractions on the Mystic map for several years now, right there with Mystic Village and Mystic Seaport,” said Shelly Wilson. “We are proud of our escape rooms, our amazing employees and their rigorous dedication to customers satisfaction, and to cleanliness and safety, especially during the recent COVID era. It has been a true pleasure to sell to Michael, who, we are confident, will take care of our ‘baby’ and help it grow even stronger.”
New owner Michael McDonald added, “Riddle me this: What is truly unique, perpetually puzzling, and an exciting fixture of Mystic tourism? Mystified, of course, and the Wilsons have built a tremendous business with lots of potential. I have been interested in purchasing an escape room business for some time now., and I am looking forward to diving into the world of puzzles and clues.”
Mrs. Wilson and Mr. McDonald added that they were grateful for the guidance and assistance of Irene Syomichev of Comer Business Brokers: “There was no mystery to this transaction process with Irene’s guidance. This was a great team effort among all parties, with Irene as an efficient quarterback. We are extremely happy with the support Comer Business Brokers provided from day one and until the closing every step of the way”.
“This was a rare opportunity for me to learn about the fascinating and popular world of escape rooms, and it was a great pleasure to coordinate the process for Shelly, Brian, and Michael,” said Ms. Syomichev, a CBB Agent. “There is no escaping the truth – at CBB, we never tire of helping Connecticut business owners Sell Well.”
About Comer Business Brokers, LLC
Comer Business Brokers, LLC, is a full-service business brokerage firm located in Fairfield County and services the entire state of Connecticut and Westchester County, NY. Owner and founder Irina Comer has more than a decade of experience of mergers and acquisitions of all types and sizes. Prior to starting her career in business brokerage industry, she spent 10 years at PricewaterhouseCoopers advising local, national, and international companies on transactional issues, including valuation, diligence, structuring and positioning. After obtaining her MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business, Irina worked with mergers and acquisitions division of Bank of America Merrill Lynch. For a full list of services and listings please refer to www.comerbb.com.