Shasta Pools is diving into a new chapter. 

Dansons Capital Group — in partnership with Accrual Equity Partners and Hydro Construction — acquired Shasta Pools with plans to expand the company into a full home‑services company. 

For Skip Ast Jr., who has spent nearly 20 years with the business his great‑uncle and grandfather built, the transition feels less like an ending and more like a handoff to people who understand Shasta.

“I’m going to still keep calling it a family business,” Skip said. “I’ve been all‑in on the Shasta brand for 20 years. The Thiessen family — it sounds corny — but they feel like an extension of our own family.”

That sense of alignment and shared Christian beliefs made the deal possible.

Shasta Pools began in 1966, when brothers Bob and Skip Ast combined their complementary strengths — Bob’s relational sales instincts and Skip Sr.’s operational discipline — into a company that would eventually build or renovate more than 150,000 pools across Maricopa County. 

Skip Jr. didn’t plan to join the company, as he studied kinesiology at Wheaton College outside Chicago. He started in sales at Shasta Pools and visited homes. He quickly became the company’s top salesperson. Leadership followed: manager of Shasta’s original sales location, then residential sales manager, then director of sales overseeing divisions from e‑commerce to landscaping.

Through it all, he carried the family legacy forward.

“Even in high school, I was proud of what my family built,” he said. “I talked like I was part of it long before I ever was.”

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The project that sparked a partnership

The connection began in an unexpected place: Jeff Thiessen’s backyard.

Jeff, Dansons Capital Group president, hired Shasta to finish a pool project another contractor couldn’t complete. A friend in the industry connected him with Skip Jr., who visited the site. That left an impression.

“They helped our dreams come true,” Jeff said. “I trusted those guys. They did a great job.”

That trust opened the door to conversations about the business itself. Jeff, his father Dan, and his brother Jordan had built Pit Boss Grills into a global brand before selling it in 2023. They were looking for their next challenge; something rooted in service, family values and long‑term stewardship. They found Shasta was the right fit.

Hydro Construction, led by Jeff’s longtime friend Curt Lonsdale, had partnered with Shasta for more than 30 years. Accrual Equity Partners brought operational expertise and a founder‑friendly investment philosophy. Together, the group represented more than 150 years of combined experience in building and scaling service‑based companies, according to Jeff.

But the real connection was cultural.

“We’re all Christians,” Jeff said. “We care about customers, we care about integrity, and we care about people. The Ast family built their business the same way.”

A new era: Shasta Home Services

The acquisition isn’t just about pools. It’s about expanding Shasta into a comprehensive home‑services platform. The company already has more than 200,000 customer relationships and unmatched route density across Central Arizona. The new ownership group plans to build on that foundation by offering residential and commercial pool construction; renovation and luxury signature series designs; hardscaping and backyard transformations; recurring maintenance and service routes; e-commerce supplies and extended warranties.

“We want to make homeowners’ lives easier,” said Jeff, whose Scottsdale-based headquarters has a design center.

“We want to be part of your family — the people you don’t have to worry about.”

For Skip, the transition is bittersweet but deeply affirming.

“This was the right time to bring in a new ownership team,” he said. “My father and my family built this company on a commitment to quality. Knowing this team shares our values gives Shasta the foundation to grow stronger than ever.”

Jeff echoes that sentiment.

“Shasta Pools has national brand recognition and a 60‑year legacy. We’re excited to catapult its growth into the next 60 years.”