Zell piloted Anixter’s board for 34 years until its $4.5 sale to Wesco International in 2020.
Private equity firm Equity Group Investments announced that Sam Zell — longtime former Chairman of wire and cable products distributor Anixter International — passed away on May 18 after complications from a recent illness. He was 82 years old.
Zell was chairman of Anixter for 34 years and piloted the company to its $4.5 billion sale to Wesco International in 2020, which essentially doubled the size of Wesco. He helped establish Anixter as a leading company in the electrical wire and cable industry, as the firm grew from $650 million to $8.8 billion in revenues under his tenure while expanding its geographic presence from three to 50 countries.
Wesco investor relations documents show that Anixter was acquired in 1986 by Itel Corporation-owned EGL, and Zell became its chairman less than a year later. Zell directed the divestment of Itel’s other investments by 1991 to move the company forward as just Anixter, adding International to its name amid its expansion.
Besides his Anixter involvement, Zell launched and grew hundreds of companies during his career that spanned more than six decades.
Equity Group Investments detailed those entrepreneur endeavors in an obituary here.
Related Posts
-
The new international Wesco Anixter brand represents the combined organization across its CALA, EMEA and…
-
Sonepar: “Henri, following a family lead, recognized very early the potential of the electrical distribution…
Mike Hockett is MDM’s executive editor, having joined the publication in March 2022. He oversees MDM’s editorial content and direction, coordinates with contributing authors, conducts interviews with executives in the wholesale distribution space and serves as the editorial face of MDM at industry events. He has extensively covered the distribution and manufacturing sectors since 2014. Hockett earned a degree in print journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and works from his home in Madison, Wisconsin. He can be contacted at mike@mdm.com.
Read the latest articles and see your reports.
Sign Up for the MDM Update Newsletter
The MDM update newsletter is your best source for news and trends in the wholesale distribution industry.
