Commercial Equipment Wholesalers
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 3,225 commercial equipment wholesalers in the US sell and distribute equipment and supplies used in restaurants, hotels, and retail stores, except for computers and office equipment and refrigeration units. In addition to selling equipment and supplies, firms may also provide installation and maintenance services.
Dependence on Health of Foodservice Sector
About two-thirds of the commercial equipment wholesaler industry’s revenue comes from food service equipment and supplies, so they are highly dependent on the health of the food service industry, particularly restaurants.
Smaller Equipment Footprints
Food service equipment manufacturers are developing new smaller models that combine multiple functions and take up less space.
Industry size & Structure
The average commercial equipment wholesaler has 14 employees and generates $8.1 million in annual revenue.
- The commercial equipment wholesalers industry in the US consists of over 3,200 firms with 46,000 employees and $26 billion in annual revenue.
- About 87% of firms operate a single location.
- The industry is fragmented, as the largest 50 firms represent about 48% of industry revenue.
- Large food service equipment wholesalers include TriMark USA, Edward Don & Co., Wasserstrom Co., Clark Associates, and Singer Equipment.
Industry Forecast
Commercial Equipment Wholesalers Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Nov 20, 2024 - Rising Sales and Prices
- According to the latest US Bureau of Labor Statistics data, producer prices for professional and commercial equipment and supplies wholesalers rose 2.6% in September compared to a year ago after rising 8.1% in the previous September-versus-September annual comparison. The rise in producer prices follows an increase in sales for professional and commercial equipment distributors, which jumped 12.1% in July YoY, according to the Census Bureau. Meanwhile, employment by the industry was relatively flat, up just 0.5% year over year in September, while average industry wages rose 3.1% over the same period to $37.38 per hour, BLS data show.
- Restaurant industry bankruptcies are on the rise amid an increase in operating costs and empty tables, The Wall Street Journal reports. In 2024, restaurant chains and operators are on track to declare the most bankruptcies in decades excluding 2020, when the pandemic upended the industry, according to an analysis of BankruptcyData.com records cited by WSJ. The firm tracked chapter 11 filings of restaurants that are publicly traded, along with companies holding more than $10 million in liabilities. Restaurant chains filing for bankruptcy in 2024 include TGI Fridays, Red Lobster, Buca di Beppo, and Rubio’s Coastal Grill. As consumers pull back from some types of discretionary spending, including dining out, same-store sales traffic at US restaurants dropped by 3.3% this year through Oct. 6 versus the same period in 2023, according to market-research firm Black Box Intelligence. Visits to casual-dining restaurants fell 4.5% over the same period.
- Fast-food restaurants and coffee shops are experimenting with smaller, take-out-focused stores, The New York Times reports. The trend in smaller, pick-up-and-delivery-only outlets started during the pandemic as a way to reduce contact and has persisted, aided by online ordering apps. Seatless, take-out-only businesses reduce rental costs for operators because they can be much smaller. According to NYT, from 2019 to 2023, the average size of a retail lease in Manhattan shrank 17% to 2,585 square feet, citing data from commercial real estate data firm CoStar Group. On New York’s Upper East Side, Chick-fil-A debuted its first location in March to serve pickup and delivery orders only. Foodservice consulting firm Technomic found that 73% of all orders at limited-service restaurants were either carryout or delivery in the first half of 2022. Commercial equipment wholesalers that can help businesses set up smaller commercial kitchens can capitalize on the seatless trend.
- The latest in food service equipment aims to leverage synergies in AI, automation, and robotics, according to Foodservice, Equipment & Supplies (FE&S). Commercial kitchen products recognized by this year’s Kitchen Innovation Awards program feature technology designed to reduce labor – a pain point for food service providers amid steeply rising wages and staffing challenges. New products use sensors, movement monitors, kitchen management software, and AI to enable employees to push a button to start cooking a preprogrammed recipe and produce a high-quality product with enhanced speed of service. “AI and recognition technologies are simplifying training by automating tasks,” explains Brian Ward with the KI Award program, adding, “If an oven recognizes the food, it doesn’t even have to wait for a human to push the correct button.” Enhancements to robotic fryers include a system that seasons and packages fries for serving or holding, FE&S noted.
Get A Demo
Vertical IQ’s Industry Intelligence Platform
See for yourself why over 60,000 users trust Vertical IQ for their industry research and call preparation needs. Our easy-to-digest industry insights save call preparation time and help differentiate you from the competition.
Build valuable, lasting relationships by having smarter conversations -
check out Vertical IQ today.