Each year, City Electric Supply (CES) celebrates Founder’s Day — a time to honor Tom Mackie and the company he built. We honor where we started and we celebrate the people, culture, and values that carry us forward.
In 1951, Tom Mackie saw a chance to build something in Coventry, England. He purchased a struggling electrical wholesale business and built a thriving company that puts people first. In 1983, he carried that momentum across the pond to North America.
Over the past 75 years, Tom Mackie’s dream has evolved into a company with a global presence, a top 10 electrical wholesale distributor in North America, and a strong legacy of prioritizing people and powering their success.
How we celebrated
Each Founder’s Day, we celebrate our strong foundation and the bright future ahead. City Electric Supply has always been about people, and our special 75th anniversary celebration demonstrated that in service to local communities.
City Electric Supply said “thank you” with a coordinated movement across North America, giving back in a big way to the cities and towns that trust us with their business and helped us become the company we are today. Across the U.S. and Canada, we reached hundreds of people through hosting food drives and assembling care packages for soldiers on active duty.
“Bringing our teams together across North America to serve their local communities and support service members deployed overseas reflects the values of service, generosity, and community that have shaped our company for 75 years,” said CES co-CEOs John Gray and Blair Feidler. “We are grateful to be part of so many communities and have the opportunity to serve our neighbors.”
“Founder’s Day is a powerful reminder that giving back has always been at the heart of who we are,” said Social Impact Manager Karen Gray. “Seeing thousands of our team members come together to fight hunger in their local communities and honoring our military through Soldier Care Kits is incredibly inspiring. The impact we can make when we work together is truly extraordinary!”
Tom Mackie’s story
In 1951, 28-year-old Tom Mackie was a husband and father of three living in Coventry, England. With the family’s savings of 300£ (about $11,000 today), Tom and his wife Georgina made the bold decision to buy an electrical business on the brink of closing. It was a risk, but Tom saw a chance to build something great. After starting operations from a 1,200-square-foot horse stable, and through years of hard work and dedication, he brought City Electrical Factors to life.
In 1983, Tom brought his values and business model to North America, opening the first City Electric Supply branch in Florida. With a focus on customer service and empowering local decision makers, CES has grown its network into more than 750 branches across North America today.