Sonepar Buys Canada Unit from HD Supply

Feb. 11, 2011
Sonepar Canada, Mississaauga, Ontario, has purchased all the assets of SESCO/QUESCO, one of several Canadian divisions of HD Supply that sells electrical

Sonepar Canada, Mississaauga, Ontario, has purchased all the assets of SESCO/QUESCO, one of several Canadian divisions of HD Supply that sells electrical supplies. The transaction is scheduled to close by the end of February. SESCO/QUESCO currently employs over 70 associates and has five branches in the Toronto metropolitan area. HD Supply Canada acquired the company in Jan. 2006.

In a press release announcing the acquisition, Keith Moss, president and CEO of Sonepar Canada, said, “This strategic acquisition supports our goals to grow our business in Ontario and strengthen our place in the Canadian electrical wholesale market. Our expanded coverage in Ontario, particularly in and around Toronto, will allow us to better serve both our existing and future customers.”

Vasken Altounian, president of HD Supply Canada, said in that release, “Sonepar Canada was one of several companies that approached HD Supply Canada to purchase the assets of SESCO/QUESCO. We felt Sonepar Canada was the best strategic match, given its reputation as a dedicated electrical distributor on a national scale.”

Sonepar Canada has more than 1,500 employees in 90 branches within six operating companies: Century Vallen, Gescan BC, Gescan Prairies, Lumen, Osso Electric and Texcan. SESCO/QUESCO will join Sonepar Canada's Ontario division, which consists of Osso Electric, Gescan and Texcan.

Globally, the Paris-based Sonepar Group has more than 31,000 employees working in 2,000-plus branches in 36 countries. According to data in Electrical Wholesaling's most recent Top 200 listing, Sonepar had North American sales of $4.57 billion in 2009. Since its 1984 acquisition of Quebec's Lumen, the company has made dozens of acquisitions in Canada and the United States and now has more than 600 locations in North America.

HD Supply Canada is one of 10 lines of business of the Atlanta-based HD Supply, which has approximately 765 locations in North America, according to the press release announcing the divestiture of the SESCO/QUESCO business.