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
Jan 20, 2025 - New High For Wages
- According to the latest US Bureau of Labor Statistics data, producer prices for professional and commercial equipment and supplies wholesalers rose 1.3% in November compared to a year ago after rising 4% in the previous November-versus-November annual comparison. While still historically high, producer prices have eased from their peak in January 2024. Employment by commercial equipment wholesalers declined 1.5% year over year in October, while average industry wages rose 2.6% over the same period to a new high of $37.98 per hour, BLS data show.
- Trends in the food service industry impact purchasing decisions and demand for commercial equipment and supplies, according to Foodservice Equipment & Supplies (FE&S) magazine. Trends with equipment implications for 2025 include the restaurant industry’s ongoing focus on value to draw in cash-strapped customers. Value menus, like McDonald's $5 meal deal, come at a cost to operators who must reduce their own costs to keep prices low for consumers, leading to an increased emphasis on multiuse, programmable, automated, and robotic equipment to save on labor costs, according to FE&S. Innovation in beverages and the launch of beverage-focused concepts like McDonald’s spinoff CosMc’s require cold brewing equipment and supplies, higher-end soda and water taps and dispensers, blenders, and syrup dispensers, notes FE&S. Baked goods are also trending creating increasing demand for commercial baking proofers and ovens. Equipment wholesalers that track trends are better prepared to meet customers’ evolving requirements.
- 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.
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