Border States To Expand In New Mexico, Texas With Nunn Electric Acquisition

Border States, Fargo, N.D., plans to extend its reach into New Mexico and Texas with an agreement to merge with Nunn Electric Supply Corp., Amarillo, Texas.

Nunn Electric is a provider of electrical, plumbing and telecom products with locations in New Mexico and Texas. The Nunn Electric name will not change except to include “a Division of Border States.

As a part of the agreement, 19 of Nunn Electric’s locations will join Border States under the names of Nunn Electric Supply, Bush Supply, Zimco Electric Supply, and Simmons-Higgins Supply as divisions of Border States. Ten of the 19 locations just sell electrical supplies; the other nine locations sell both electrical and plumbing products. Plumbing accounts for about 10 percent of the business.

Approximately 275 Nunn employees will join Border States in the merger. The combined organization will have more than 1,000 employees and 43 branch operations in 11 states and Mexico. Nunn Electric’s employees will participate in the Border States employee stock ownership program (ESOP).

Border States will establish a new region, the South Central Region, which will include all of the Nunn branches, said Tammy Miller, president of Border States. Bob Burdette, Nunn Electric’s current president, will manage the South Central Region, she added.

Nunn also operates several stand-alone showrooms with plumbing, lighting and appliances. Border States will not acquire this segment of the business. Instead, Carl Hare, Nunn Electric’s chairman of the board and CEO, will spin this off, said Miller.

Nunn Electric was founded in 1910 in Amarillo, Texas, by Lindsey Nunn. The company was purchased in 1926 by the Carl Hare family, and that family continues to maintain majority ownership. The company ranks No. 60 on Electrical Wholesaling’s Top 200 listing in 2005.

Founded in 1952, Border States had $410 million in 2004 sales and is the 14th largest electrical distributor on Electrical Wholesaling’s Top 200 listing. The employee-owned company was listed in EW’s Top 200 listing as having more than 690 employees.

Border States has an aggressive growth strategy and is well positioned to handle growth with its financial strength and corporate infrastructure,” said Tammy Miller, president of Border States. “The company has been aggressively seeking acquisition and expansion opportunities with companies that are profitable, have quality employees, are number one or number two in the markets they serve, have strong business ethics and similar culture. Nunn is a perfect fit. Additionally, Nunn helps us expand our footprint in New Mexico and Texas and they are an A-D (Affiliated Distributors) member. We are extremely excited that our two great companies are joining forces. We are eager to build upon the solid foundation and reputation Nunn has established in New Mexico and Texas. We will be a powerhouse in the markets we serve.

Border States has made several other strategic acquisitions recently. In 2004, Border States expanded in Wyoming with the purchase of Miller Electric Supply Inc., Gillette, Wyo. That same year, the company also expanded into the energy market with the acquisition of Bates and Associates Inc., Grand Haven, Mich., a 24-year-old distributor of natural gas and oil products in the Midwest.

The acquisition of Nunn Electric will extend Border States’ reach into New Mexico and Texas. Border States currently has branches in El Paso, Texas, and Albuquerque and Farmington, N.M. The company also has a branch in Juarez, Mexico. Border States has “virtually no” overlapping branches with Nunn, said Miller.

We will keep all of the Nunn locations open and aggressively seek opportunities to grow the business in these locations,” she said.

The acquisition is expected to be completed April 1, 2006.