Louise O’Sullivan is a familiar name in the foodservice equipment and supplies community. So familiar that a roar of applause and cheer instantly spread through the ballroom on first mention of her receiving the 2024 Lifetime Achievement award during the FE&S Dealer of the Year & All-Industry Awards Gala on May 18, 2024.
When a company has been around for 122 years, it’s easy for outsiders to think they know all there is to know about the organization. But if you think you know Wasserstrom, think again. Over the course of the company’s history, there have been only two constants: change and the Wasserstrom family. And the former would not happen without the constant prodding from the latter.
Foodservice Equipment & Supplies named The Wasserstrom Company the 2024 winner of the magazine’s acclaimed Dealer of the Year Award.
Singer Equipment Company earned the FE&S 2023 Dealer of the Year award by dramatically transforming its business in the past decade.
Foodservice Equipment & Supplies named Singer Equipment Company the 2023 winner of the magazine’s acclaimed Dealer of the Year Award.
At the inception of Avanti Restaurant Solutions 19 years ago, owner Mark Rossi included earning the title of FE&S Dealer of the Year as part of the strategic plan. Almost 20 years later when he received the phone call that the company was receiving that recognition, his initial reaction was, “Not yet.”
Foodservice Equipment & Supplies named Avanti Restaurant Solutions the 2022 winner of the magazine’s celebrated Dealer of the Year Award.
A lot has changed at Stafford-Smith Inc. since 2001, the year FE&S first recognized the Kalamazoo, Mich.-based company as Dealer of the Year.
From 2014 to 2019 Stafford-Smith saw its sales steadily increase from $137.01 million to $241.23 million, making the company the 8th largest foodservice equipment and supplies dealer, per FE&S’ 2020 Distribution Giants Study. Foodservice Equipment and Supplies named Stafford-Smith the 2021 winner of the magazine’s prestigious Dealer of the Year Award.
Picture this: In 1997, just 23 years ago, Mobile Fixture & Equipment Co. Inc. operated out of a retrofitted car dealership building with low ceilings and not so much as a forklift to move inventory. Sales were $5 million, the majority of which was generated by one rep. In a rapidly changing industry in which pressure to modernize and grow or die were becoming ever stronger, death — or at least acquisition — might have seemed imminent.
Numbers tell a compelling story at TriMark USA, which since 2014 has held the top spot on FE&S’ Distribution Giants ranking of the nation’s largest foodservice equipment and supplies dealers. That year, the South Attleboro, Mass.-based, company reported prior-year sales of $944 million, overtaking longtime leader Edward Don & Co. The same year, it became the first E&S dealership to pass the $1 billion milestone and has since continued to widen the gap between itself and many of its competitors.
Unlike most CEOs whose companies sell to private equity, Jerry Hyman is still around and very much the captain of the ship at TriMark USA. Now on its fourth private-equity partnership in the past 20 years, he’s become skilled at navigating those sometimes shark-infested waters, honing an approach that doesn’t just satisfy profit-hungry PE partners but that ultimately adds value to the company and, in turn, to its customers.
Click here for a PDF of the 1990 Dealer of the Year cover story: The Boelter Companies.
Click here for a PDF of the 2005 Dealer of the Year cover story: The Boelter Companies.
The Boelter Companies continue to do a lot of things right. More than a lot, actually.
Quiet Giants
Through a mix of shared traditions, in-depth training and strategic foresight, Ace Mart has managed to cultivate a careful balance between old and new without forsaking either.
Norman “Gus” Gustafson was well known for caring about people. He treated customers as he wished to be treated, and he extended that same courtesy to employees and business partners. He wasn’t afraid of hard work, and he was wary of a man in a tie.
During the past seven years, companies from all segments of the foodservice industry have slugged it out with one another trying to keep from losing market share during a sluggish economic period. In contrast, one company from a small town in Central Pennsylvania continues to grow at an accelerated rate. In fact, during the past four years, Clark Associates, Inc. has almost tripled its annual revenues.
Clark Associates may operate three distinct distribution channels, but they are all influenced by the vision of CEO Fred Clark. FE&S sat down with Clark to learn more about what makes this dynamic company and its leader tick.
Foodservice Equipment & Supplies is the longest-running publication serving the decision-makers of the nearly $15 billion E&S industry.
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Foodservice Equipment & Supplies (FE&S) is the one media source that connects equipment and supplies manufacturers and service providers with the full distribution channel including news, trends and best practices for foodservice equipment dealers, specifiers, operators, and supply chain partners.
