Family Business with Family Values

City Electric Supply (CES) is a family-owned international electrical wholesale distributor serving the construction and electrical contracting industry headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The company was founded by Tom Mackie in the United Kingdom in 1951. The very first branch was in an old barn, and Tom’s desk was an old door supported by two tea chests and two columns of red bricks.

By 1983, CES was ready to expand to the United States, opening its first U.S. branch in Tampa, Florida. In 2000, the company celebrated its 100th U.S. branch. Today, CES has over 500 U.S. branches and more than 1,000 branches worldwide. CES is the seventh largest electrical wholesale distributor in the country — which is a big shift from its beginning in a barn.

“My grandfather, Tom Mackie, opened the first CES branch in the United States in 1983. And being the hard-working, enterprising man that he was, he opened the 10th US branch just one year later,” said CES President & CEO Thomas Hartland-Mackie in 2020 after opening the 500th U.S. branch. “I know my grandfather would have been so proud to see this day come, and I am grateful to the whole City Electric Supply team for helping to continue his legacy. It’s our team’s hard work and commitment to the best-in-class customer service that helps us continue thriving and growing.”

As a family-owned company, CES is dedicated to providing personalized service and support to customers in the residential, commercial, and industrial markets in countries around the world, including the U.S, the U.K, Canada, Spain, Australia, Ireland, China, and Turkey. With over 7,500 employees worldwide and more than 3,000 in the U.S. alone, the company has successfully maintained its founding principle of empowering people to make local business decisions.

Internationally, CES has 51 in-house brands. In 1996, the company began manufacturing its own in-house brands in North America to give customers and CES employees a low-cost alternative while still providing quality products. In 2014, the company combined all six of its U.S. manufacturing brands into one by creating TAMCO Group.