Industrial Distribution's 2020 Big 50 List

You've seen our 2020 Big 50 countdown videos (and if not, you really should). Here, see the list in a concise, easy-reference format.

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Fifty Forward

The annual Industrial Distribution Big 50 List is here, and we can say with confidence that there has never before been such a mixed bag of scenarios facing the distributors in our annual ranking report. Some companies netted record sales figures in 2019, only to be struck down by the pandemic early into their next fiscal year. For others, the gradual softening of their core sectors meant 2019 wasn’t as rosy as they’d hoped.

Epicor is the Platinum Sponsor of ID's 2020 Big 50 ListEpicor is the Platinum Sponsor of ID's 2020 Big 50 ListAs you read ahead, do so within the context of this list’s parameters: we rank these companies based on their 2019 sales figures, so the pandemic is not yet reflected in their revenue numbers. That said, we’ve tried to provide some analysis in our print feature and video countdowns that acknowledges their present challenges as well, in order to provide an ongoing look at the current climate for industrial distribution.

Check out those countdown videos here: Part 1 (#50-31), Part 2 (30-11), Part 3 (10-1). Those videos also include much more information from our editors as to what led to companies moving up and down or list or staying put, along with exclusive video interviews with a few Big 50 company CEOs and insights from a couple of industry experts.

You might actually be pleasantly surprised, as we have been, by the strong initiatives many distributors have undertaken to continue to forge ahead and gain market share despite the circumstances. But you will also see uncertaintly, as distributors of all sizes face the same headwinds. 

If you have questions about this year’s list, please contact our editors Anna Wells ([email protected]) or Mike ([email protected]). Additionally, you can find our methodology below the list here.

Congratulations to all the companies on our 2020 Big 50 List, and we at ID wish everyone continued success going forward. And our sincere thanks to Epicor for being the Platinum Sponsor of this year's Big 50.

— ID Executive Editor Anna Wells & Managing Editor Mike Hockett

Here's our 2019 Big 50 List

Here's our 2018 Big 50 List

Here's our 2017 Big 50 List

Industrial Distribution’s 2020 Big 50 List

#

Company

Headquarters

2019 Sales

CEO/President

Locations

Employees

1

W.W. Grainger

Lake Forest, IL

$11.49 billion

DG Macpherson

486

25,000

2

Motion Industries

Birmingham, AL

$6.53 billion

Randy Breaux

566

7,686

3

Airgas

Radnor, PA

$6.20 billion

Pascal Vinet

1,400+

18,500

4

HD Supply

Atlanta, GA

$6.15 billion

Joe DeAngelo

314

11,500

5

Fastenal

Winona, MN

$5.33 billion

Dan Florness

2,227

20,280

6

Winsupply

Dayton, OH

$3.92 billion

John McKenzie

600

6,700

7

MRC Global

Houston, TX

$3.66 billion

Andrew Lane

240

2,850

8

Applied Industrial Technologies

Cleveland, OH

$3.46 billion*

Neil Schrimsher

584

6,289

9

MSC Industrial Supply

Melville, NY

$3.34 billion*

Erik Gershwind

90

6,500

10

NOW Inc.

Houston, TX

$2.95 billion

David Cherchinsky

205

2,650

11

WESCO International (Industrial)

Pittsburgh, PA

$2.94 billion

John Engel

500

18,900

12

Würth Industry North America

Ramsey, NJ

$2.23 billion

Dan Hill

110

2,000

13

Wolseley Industrial Group

Newport News, VA

$1.75 billion

Rob Braig

172

2,500

14

Vallen (North America)

Belmont, NC

$1.5-1.9 billion

Chuck Delph

410

4,500

15

F.W. Webb

Bedford, MA

$1.30 billion

Jeff Pope

90

2,000+

16

DXP Enterprises

Houston, TX

$1.27 billion

David Little

153

2,400+

17

Kaman Distribution

Bloomfield, CT

$1.12 billion

Ben Mondics

220

2,100

18

Edgen Murray

Baton Rouge, LA

$996 million

Dan O'Leary

17

445

19

Global Industrial

Port Washington, NY

$947 million

Bob Dooley

7

1,500+

20

Optimas Solutions

Glenview, IL

$865 million

Marc Strandquist

41

1,318

21

Bearing Distributors Inc. (BDI)

Cleveland, OH

$776 million

Carl James

214

1,525

22

ERIKS North America

Pittsburgh, PA

N/A**

Shawn Courtney

100+

1,000+

23

Ohio Transmission Corporation

Columbus, OH

$610 million

David Scheer

55

1,300

24

EWIE Group

Ann Arbor, MI

$586 million

Manoj Sachdeva

16

1,100

25

SBP Holdings

Houston, TX

$548 million

Don Fritzinger

96

1,600

26

BlackHawk Industrial

Broken Arrow, OK

$477 million

John Mark

35

850

27

Border States (Industrial)

Fargo, ND

$447 million

David White

103

2,500

28

R.S. Hughes

Sunnyvale, CA

$429 million

Bill Matthews

50

595

29

Wajax (Industrial Parts)

Mississauga, Ontario

$396 million

Mark Foote

103

2,385

30

Descours et Cabaud (North America)

Lyon, France

$375 million

Philippe Legris

66

1,025

31

Lawson Products

Chicago, IL

$375 million

Michael DeCata

5

1,500

32

Endries International

Brillion, WI

$351 million

Steve Endries

11

803

33

Turtle & Hughes (Industrial)

Linden, NJ

$325 million

Kathleen Shanahan

15

865

33

Hisco

Houston, TX

$325 million

Bob Dill

37

495

35

Kimball Midwest

Columbus, OH

$300 million

Pat McCurdy

4

1,550

36

DGI Supply

Wheeling, IL

$288 million

Jim Hobbs

33

560

37

Tencarva Machinery Co.

Greensboro, NC

$247 million

Ed Pearce III

31

380

38

Hydradyne

Fort Worth, TX

$234 million

David Parks

32

430

39

Bossard North America

Cedar Falls, IA

$226 million

Steen Hansen

16

N/A

40

Bridgestone HosePower

Orange Park, FL

$214 million

J. Palmer Clarkson

51

N/A

41

CBT Company

Cincinnati, OH

$204 million

Jim Stahl

3

234

42

Crescent Electric (Industrial)

East Dubuque, IL

$199 million

Scott Teerlinck

140+

1,845+

43

Womack Machine Supply

Farmers Branch, TX

$164 million

Matt Oldroyd

7

215

44

JGB Enterprises

Liverpool, NY

$148 million

Bob Zywicki

6

281

45

IBT Industrial Solutions

Merriam, KS

$147 million

Jeff Cloud

37

345

46

Mallory Safety & Supply

Longview, WA

$141 million

Tim Loy

30

480

47

Shively Bros.

Flint, MI

$140 million

Scott Shively

14

400

47

Eastern Industrial Supplies

Greenville, SC

$140 million

Kip Miller

17

338

49

Cummins-Wagner

Annapolis Junction, MD

$135 million

Doug Ardinger

14

242

50

Martin Supply

Florence, AL

$132 million

David Ruggles

16

304

*Calendar 2019. Applied Industrial Technologies and MSC Industrial Supply's fiscal year ended at least several months before the rest of the companies on our list, so to level the field, we accounted for their calendar 2019 sales. It had no impact on their ranking.
**ERIKS confirmed their 2019 revenue figure to Industrial Distribution, but asked that it not be displayed publicly.

Just missing the cut:

Mahar Tool Supply - $118 million
Valin Corporation - $109 million

METHODOLOGY

All Big 50 List companies are ranked according to their 2019 full-year global sales, and all figures are reported in USD. All Big 50 companies are based in North America, or if headquartered elsewhere, we account only for their North American operations. Master distributors are not eligible for Big 50 List inclusion. 

We obtain information for publicly-traded companies based on their annual and quarterly reports, earning statements and company verifications. For privately-held companies, we rely on their self-reported data and follow-up communication. Recently published press releases, company website information and other news reports are also used to supplement company data for our Big 50 feature. The Big 50 interviews were conducted via email, survey and by phone by Industrial Distribution editorial staff. To be eligible for Big 50 consideration, company information had to be submitted by Sept. 11. 

We elect to refrain from listing any companies that don’t confirm their sales information to ID or don’t fit our definition of an ‘industrial distributor’, which becomes more challenging each year as the market evolves. There are a handful of companies, such as Amazon Business, McMaster-Carr and SunSource, which we acknowledge would make our Big 50 List, but haven’t shared their revenue figures in several years or more. 

For those of you who don’t see your company name on our list, but think you should, please contact us with your information and we’ll consider adding your company to our Big 50 pool for 2020. As always, your feedback — good or bad — is appreciated. Find more Big 50 metholodology info on our website.

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