Graybar Electric Co. (St. Louis)
The company announced several promotions in its executive ranks. Tom Twitty has been named senior VP - Supply Chain Management effective April 1, 2023. Twitty currently serves as district VP in the company’s Richmond district. In his new role, he will lead Graybar’s strategies for delivering an exceptional customer experience and supporting profitable growth through the company’s operational platform, service capabilities and logistics network.
David Bender has been named regional VP with responsibility for the company’s Minneapolis, St. Louis, Dallas, Seattle, Southwest and California districts. Bender currently serves as VP - Business Performance and will move into his new role on Jan. 1, 2023.
Brian Delaney has been named VP - Subsidiaries, with responsibility for Graybar’s U.S.-based subsidiaries, also effective Jan. 1, 2023. Delaney currently serves as VP - Marketing and Strategic Planning.
NSI Industries (Huntersville, NC)
Industry veteran Tom O’Gara was named as the company’s first national sales manager for its Electrical Division Cable and Conduit Fittings Product category. Previously, O’Gara has been with the company’s Remke brand for the past 15 years, most recently as VP of sales and marketing. In his new role, O’Gara will report directly to Tom Wallace, NSI vice president of sales, and will be collaborating with regional vice presidents, the national accounts team and regional sales managers to support the company’s strategic initiatives related to NSI’s Cable and Conduit fittings products.
Schaedler Yesco (Harrisburg, PA)
After 22 years with the company, Matt Brnik will retire from the company later this month. He will be succeeded by Ryan Jones, executive VP.
After serving 8.5 years with General Electric and 14 years with Rockwell Automation, Brnik joined Schaedler Yesco in Oct. 2000, just a few months after Schaedler Bros. merged with York Electrical Supply Co. In addition to overseeing the sales team, he was instrumental in the integration of the companies, which became Schaedler Yesco Distribution, Inc.
In 2004, Brnik was promoted to president, guiding the company toward growth, adding sixteen branches in just over 10 years through acquisition and a joint partnership initiative with APR Supply and Industrial Piping Systems.
Having grown up in western Pennsylvania, Matt’s affinity for the region and eye for opportunity led the company to expand into that region by purchasing Service Electric Co. in 2010. “Matt has really shown us the opportunity available in the western Pennsylvania market. We are very excited to continue what Matt helped us start,” said, Farrah Mittel, company president, in the press release, referring to the company’s May 2022 announcement about building a new regional distribution center in Lower Burrell, PA.
In addition to participating in the Hubbell Distributor Advisory Board, the Product Committee at AD, and the board of the National Association of Independent Lighting Distributors (NAILD), Brnik has been on the board of the Electric League of Western Pennsylvania since 2014.
“The industry is evolving, and I’m very proud of my work with the Schaedler Yesco team,” he said. “We’ve positioned the company for big things, and I’m leaving with the next chapter in the capable hands of Ryan Jones and the rest of the executive team.”
Rexel (Dallas)
Chris Smith recently joined Rexel USA as an outside sales rep specializing in telecommunications. He has more than 40 years of experience in the telecom business and plans to make Rexel a one-stop shop for all telecom material needs.
Brendan O’Hare, senior VP and Gulf Central Region president, said in the press release, “I am looking forward to working with Chris to expand Rexel into the telecommunications market. He has vast industry knowledge and experience that few others can offer, and I know his leadership will help us build a competitive telecommunications program.”
In other news at Rexel, Sabine Haman was named group chief human resources and communications officer and as a member of the executive committee. In this position, she will be responsible for implementing the HR initiatives necessary to the success of Rexel’s PowerUp 2025 strategic plan.
In addition to its online store, Rexel USA has a distribution network of over 440 warehouse storefront locations throughout the U.S. – including 46 branches in the Gulf Central Region. Rexel is ranked #5 in Electrical Wholesaling’s 2022 Top 150 ranking.
Encore Wire Corp. (McKinney, TX)
Bret Eckert has been appointed to the role of executive VP. In addition to this role, he will continue to serve as the company’s CFO. Eckert joined Encore Wire in Sept. 2019 as VP – Finance, formally assuming the role of CFO of Encore Wire Corp. on January 1, 2020. Prior to joining Encore, Eckert was executive managing director for the Houston office of Riveron Consulting from June 2018 to August 2019. Previously he was senior VP and CFO of Atmos Energy Corp. in Dallas for approximately five years. He spent the first 22 years of his career with Ernst & Young.