Atlanta Light Bulbs Buys The Bulb Man

May 24, 2006
Gary Root, president of Atlanta Light Bulbs Inc., Tucker, Ga., has acquired The Bulb Man Inc., Buffalo, N.Y., for an undisclosed dollar amount.

Gary Root, president of Atlanta Light Bulbs Inc., Tucker, Ga., has acquired The Bulb Man Inc., Buffalo, N.Y., for an undisclosed dollar amount.

Atlanta Light Bulbs focuses on providing products and customer service for extremely hard-to-find items that are manufactured by major U.S. brands as well as European companies. The Bulb Man Inc. will follow in this direction, said Root.

"Bulb Man’s expertise is marketing energy-saving products in the New York area, he said. "New York has very nice state rebate opportunities (New York State Energy Research and Development Authority), and The Bulb Man staff is very knowledgeable in this area. Bulb Man also handled many national accounts..."

Atlanta Light Bulbs has a strong market presence in Georgia and the South, said Root. The acquisition of The Bulb Man will give the company a presence in western New York, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

With this New York addition, Atlanta Light Bulbs Inc. has three locations, including Tucker, Buffalo and Marietta, Ga. Root said he is in a growth mode and continues to look for additional specialty lighting locations.

Before starting Atlanta Light Bulbs, Root launched CID Inc. with $500 from his savings account. CID Inc. was a one-man operation that focused on selling electrical supplies to OEM and industrial accounts. Root said he removed the lighting products from CID Inc., and started Atlanta Light Bulbs in 1981. At first, Atlanta Light Bulbs only sold bulbs and ballasts, but now offers around 70,000 items.

The company serves many niche markets, he said. "We go to market in several ways. We have our mainstay, which is our local business. Then we have our national division, which includes out Internet division. We also have our redistribution market, where we supply the hard-to-find items to hardware stores, industrial supply companies, jobbers, lighting and electrical supply companies." The company now has about 25 employees.