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Electricalmarketing 411 Gettyimages 3427833handshake595
Electricalmarketing 411 Gettyimages 3427833handshake595
Electricalmarketing 411 Gettyimages 3427833handshake595
Electricalmarketing 411 Gettyimages 3427833handshake595

Acquisitions of Top 200 Distributors Point Toward Steady Consolidation of the Industry

May 20, 2016
In 2015 and through the first five months of 2016, 14 Top 200 electrical distributors have been acquired, and Electrical Marketing’s editors conservatively estimate the total sales volume of these deals at no less than $2.89 billion.

It’s no secret that the biggest acquirers in the electrical market use EW’s annual ranking of the Top 200 electrical distributors in North America as a shopping list for future deals. Judging from the number of deals they have closed over the past 18 months, they have certainly been doing a brisk business.

In 2015 and through the first five months of 2016, 14 Top 200 electrical distributors have been acquired, and Electrical Marketing’s editors conservatively estimate the total sales volume of these deals at no less than $2.89 billion. Anixter’s purchase of HD Supply Solutions, with $1.9 billion in 2014 sales, accounted for a  big chunk of this total, which utilizes 2014 sales data (2015 sales data for these companies was still coming in at press-time). If you thought last year was a quiet year for M&As in the electrical market, think again. These acquisitions probably add up to about 4% of the estimated $65 billion in electrical sales accounted for by the Top 200.

While most of the acquisition activity definitely appears to be with Top 200 distributors, as you can see in the chart on page 2, there were plenty of smaller deals, too. Sonepar North America appears to have acquired the biggest chunk of sales, with a total Top 200 tally of $615.78 million. This doesn’t include its purchase of Rexel’s Latin American assets, which at the time of the purchase last year produced an estimated $250 million in sales. Its 2015-2016 Top 200 purchases include Eck Supply, Richmond, Va.; Electrical Distributors, Dallas; Grove Madsen Industries, Reno; and QED, Las Vegas.

WESCO Distribution has also added some serious sales volume with its purchases of Hill Country Electric Supply, Austin, Texas; Needham Electric Supply, Canton, Mass.; and Atlanta Electrical Distributors, Duluth, Ga.  In 2014 sales dollars, these deals totaled approximately $324 million.

Sonepar and WESCO weren’t the only acquirers making notable acquisitions. Consolidated Electrical Distributors (CED), bought Electric Motor Sales & Supply, Chattanooga, Tenn.; and SEFCO Electric Supply, Jackson, Miss. Electrical  Equipment Co., Raleigh, N.C., bought Williams Supply, Roanoke, Va., and the Lynchburg, Va., branch of Eck Supply. Graybar bought Advantage Industrial Automation, Duluth, Ga. And Rexel bought Brohl & Appell, Sandusky, Ohio.