WESCO International, Inc., Pittsburgh, said its WESCO Distribution business moved to expand significantly in the Atlanta area’s residential and commercial construction and industrial MRO markets, buying Atlanta Electrical Distributors (AED), a five-location distributor with its headquarters in Duluth, Ga. The deal is expected to close this month.
AED and its staff of about 70 people generates approximately $85 million in annual revenues from locations in Duluth, Canton, Conyers, Marietta and Carrolton, Ga. AED’s branch network includes about 200,000 square feet of warehouse space. The company’s operations also include a tool, fastener and safety division, according to the AED website.
“We are pleased to become part of the WESCO team. We look forward to bringing a more comprehensive offering of electrical solutions to the industrial, commercial and contractor customers in the Atlanta Metro area,” said AED President Kevin Kester.
The addition of AED’s five branches also fills a significant gap in WESCO’s coverage of one of the largest metropolitan markets in the Southeast. According to the branch locator on its website, WESCO has five branch locations in the Atlanta vicinity (depending on what cities you include): Fairburn, Norcross, Alpharetta, Gainesville and Athens. Most of those locations are shared by more than one WESCO operating unit, but they primarily serve utility, industrial (through its EESCO division), datacom (CSC) and electronics (RS Electronics) markets.
“The addition of AED to our portfolio supports our One WESCO growth strategy and expands our presence in this growing Southeastern end market,” said John Engel, WESCO’s chairman, president, and CEO.
AED ranked #115 in the 2015 Electrical Wholesaling Top 200 list.
