City Electric Supply (CES) (Dallas, TX)
Co-CEO Andrew Dawes (in photo above) will retire on April 30, 2026, following more than three decades of service. Dawes, who was appointed co-CEO in 2023, will be succeeded by current VP of Operations Blair Feidler. Feidler will be promoted to co-CEO and will serve alongside Co-CEO John Gray. He will take over as co-CEO in May 2026.
Dawes joined the company in 1992 as a driver and advanced through roles in inside sales, branch management and operations management. He became VP of operations for CES Canada in 2012 and moved to the U.S. in 2017 as co-COO. He continued to oversee Canadian operations and help lead new initiatives such as the CES eCommerce platform in 2019.
Feidler began his CES career in 1997 as a driver and warehouse associate at the company’s Monroe branch in North Carolina. Within a year, he was promoted to operations manager, then to outside sales, and by 2000 became branch manager, opening the Westinghouse branch in Charlotte. Over the next two decades, he advanced through several positions as district manager, regional manager and vice president of operations. In his most recent role, he has overseen the growth of more than 150 branches across 11 states.
As Dawes prepares for retirement and Feidler steps into his new role on May 1, CES is finalizing succession plans to ensure a smooth transition and continued success.
Graybar ( St. Louis, MO)
Kevin Zak has been named VP-Industrial Automation Business, effective Jan. 5. In this role, he will provide strategic leadership for Graybar’s industrial automation business, with a focus on achieving growth by delivering exceptional service and comprehensive solutions to the company’s industrial automation and manufacturing customers.
Zak has more than three decades of experience in industrial automation, digital transformation and advanced manufacturing. Much of his career was with Phoenix Contact, a global leader in electrification, networking and automation solutions, where he most recently served as president of the Industrial Components and Electronics business and led the company’s U.S. subsidiary.