Sonepar USA Holdings Inc., Charleston, SC, has entered into an agreement to acquire Springfield Electric Supply Co., A family-owned business headquartered in Springfield, IL, since 1912, Springfield Electric Supply offers a full line of products and services to electrical contractor and commercial accounts. Operating in Illinois, Indiana, Missouri and Iowa and ranked #43 on Electrical Wholesaling’s 2021 ranking of the 150 largest electrical distributors in North America, Springfield Electric joins Sonepar with 19 branch locations, 350 associates, and a 100-year track record in the electrical wholesale distribution business. Springfield Electric had 2020 sales in excess of $200 million.
“Springfield Electric’s geographic footprint and strong performance makes this a highly strategic fit for us,” said Rob Taylor, president of Sonepar North America, in the press release. “Its strong leadership team and culture of outstanding customer service aligns very well with ours. This acquisition offers Sonepar USA a very solid platform for growth and expansion in territories where we are not currently represented.”
Dan Dungan, executive chairman of Springfield Electric said in the release, “We had choices and chose Sonepar as our partner. Culturally they are a fantastic fit for our associate owners and align closely with our family values.”
Chris Scarbrough, CEO of Springfield Electric, added, “Joining Sonepar presents great opportunities for both our customers and associates. We look forward to working with Sonepar to leverage their resources and enhance our business capabilities, especially around digital solutions and customizable services. This union is the next chapter in our growth story.”
The acquisition is expected to close in August, subject to customary regulatory approvals.
By its own standards, Sonepar has been relatively quiet on the acquisition front in the United States in the last year or two. Its most recent purchases include North Coast Electric, Seattle (2019); City Electric Supply, Syracuse, NY (2018); Eck Supply, Richmond, VA (2015): and QED, Las Vegas, NV (2015). However, over the past 25 years, Sonepar has changed the face of distribution in North America. EW's database of acquisitions shows that Sonepar or one of its local companies have acquired at least 59 distributors in the United States, Canada or Puerto Rico since the 1990s.
Sonepar USA is represented by 13 locally managed operating companies with over 700 locations nationwide. It entered the US in 1998 and has continued to grow due to strategic acquisitions and organic growth. The parent company, the Paris-based 45,000-employee Sonepar Group, is also family-owned. It operates approximately 2,800 locations in 40 countries worldwide and had 2020 sales of about $27 billion.