Every weekday in December, tED magazine is counting down the Top 20 Stories of 2016. Below, the #5 most-viewed story of the year, originally published on June 8, 2016.
FARGO, N.D.—Border States Electric (BSE), a 100 percent employee-owned company, reached an agreement to purchase Shealy Electrical Wholesalers, an electrical wholesale supply leader in North and South Carolina with more than 350 employees and 17 locations. Shealy will join BSE August 1, pending regulatory approval.
“We spent a lot of time looking at different leadership and ownership transition options, keeping in mind what would be best for our customers, employees and supplier partners,” said Bill DeLoache, Shealy CEO. “After much consideration, we concluded that an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) best met these objectives. Border States is a great distributor and an established, top-performing ESOP company.”
“We are excited to welcome Shealy Electrical Wholesalers to our employee-owned company. Shealy is a market leader with a proven track record of sustainable growth. Their values and belief in service excellence, strong vendor relationships and the power of employee-ownership align well with our culture at Border States,” said Tammy Miller, BSE CEO.
Shealy will continue to be led by DeLoache; Brent Spear, COO; and David White, president. The name will change to Shealy Electrical Wholesalers, a division of Border States. BSE will establish a new southeast region with White serving as the region vice president. The regional corporate office will be in Columbia, South Carolina.
“Like Shealy, Border States is an independent distributor and very engaged in our industry,” said White. “Our two companies share similar core values based on doing what¹s right for our customers, employees, vendors and the communities where we live and work. We both possess a strong desire to grow and encourage innovation. This is a great fit.”
BSE supplies products and services to construction, industrial and utility customers. BSE will have more than 2,200 employees and 97 branches in 18 states after they join forces with Shealy Electrical Wholesalers. Corporate headquarters are located in Fargo.
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