It may not have topped the financial pages in the United States, but last month's IPO by Rexel was big news in Europe. The French electrical distributor put more than 61.5 million shares of its stock up for sale on Paris' Euronext stock exchange April 5.

When twice as many institutional and retail investors than expected lined up to buy the shares, Rexel walked away with a cool $1.34 billion.

It's the latest IPO in the distribution arena. Interline Brands went public in late 2004 with a $200 million offering, and PVF distributor Edgen Murray is planning its own offering later this year.

Going public is only one avenue distributors are exploring for growth. Some companies are accepting capital investment by private equity firms, others pursue acquisitions, and still others prefer the more traditional organic approach of opening new locations.

The wholesale sector has become increasingly popular with private equity firms; take PVF distributor McJunkin Corp., which sold an undisclosed stake to Goldman Sachs last year.

A private equity infusion of capital gives companies like McJunkin a much stronger base for acquisitions or other expansion moves, says John Carte, McJunkin's general manager for supply management.

“Goldman views McJunkin as an excellent platform for growth opportunities, focusing on our core market segments,” Carte notes. “[The deal] allows us to have a larger supply of capital to continue [growing].”

A number of other private equity shops have entered the distribution space. In March, the Carlyle Group announced plans to buy Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.'s Engineered Products division for nearly $1.5 billion in cash, and Strategic Distribution Inc. became a private company after a $30 million merger with Project Eagle Holding Corp. and Project Eagle Merger Corp., each a Platinum Equity portfolio company.

Code Hennessy & Simmons bought a stake in water and sewer products distributor Mainline Supply Co. from PNC Equity Management in February, and in January Industrial Controls Distributors was sold by FdG Associates to an affiliate of New York-based AEA Investors.

The biggest equity player in distribution, however, may be Apollo Management, which spent $1.25 million on Jacuzzi Brands Inc. in February before selling Jacuzzi's Zurn Plumbing Products Group for roughly $942 million in cash to Rexnord Corp.—which Apollo picked up last year for more than $1.8 billion.

Apollo also bought a stake in Bradco Supply in January, and last year bought General Electric Co.'s GE Advanced Materials division, renaming it Momentive Performance Materials.

The Home Depot's wholesale distribution arm, HD Supply, exemplifies the advantage of another vehicle for growth: acquisitions. Through an aggressive and rapid series of purchases over the last two years, HD Supply has become a major player in distribution. The company ranked fifth on INDUSTRIAL DISTRIBUTION's 2006 Big 50 distributors list, with 2005 revenues of more than $4 billion. That number tripled to $12 billion last year.

Another company growing by acquisition is Airgas Inc., which sells industrial gases, welding equipment and safety supplies nationwide. Airgas has made more than 350 acquisitions since 1982, growing sales from $3 million to more than $3 billion in that time.

Then there's the Fastenal Co., where growth means geographic expansion through the opening of new locations. The fastener distributor opened 245 stores last year, 222 stores in 2005, and 219 in 2004—and expects to open between 260 and 360 this year.

Growth also means new locations for W.W. Grainger Inc., which opened 43 new locations, relocated 26 and expanded 49 in 2006 as part of its nationwide branch expansion plan begun in 2004.

Grainger expects to spend as much as $80 million on the plan this year, including its strategy to grow in the New York, New Jersey and Connecticut tri-state area, which the company announced in March. Grainger plans to open roughly five new facilities, relocate others and expand some existing stores in the region, growing its distribution network there by about 40 percent.

Grainger has already expanded its reach in 20 markets nationwide, and added 23,000 items to its catalog earlier this year.

But no matter which growth vehicle a distributor decides to employ, one thing is indisputable—they all work. Distribution is growing by leaps and bounds, as evidenced by the companies on Industrial Distribution'sBig 50 list. During fiscal 2006, those firms had total sales of more than $83 billion—a nearly 20 percent increase over the $70 billion logged in fiscal 2005.