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 3,400 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 foodservice equipment and supplies, so they are highly dependent on the health of the foodservice industry.
Smaller Equipment Footprints
Foodservice 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 15 employees and generates $7-8 million in annual revenue.
- The commercial equipment wholesalers industry in the US consists of over 3,400 firms with 52,000 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 foodservice 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 15, 2022 - Retailers Adding Food and Beverage Service
- The trend in the retail industry of adding food and beverage service to physical stores is a win-win for the commercial equipment wholesale industry, which counts both restaurants and retail stores among its major customers. To lure back shoppers, brick-and-mortar stores are looking to the hospitality industry for inspiration, specifically by incorporating food and beverage services, Retail TouchPoints reported in November. Retailers are adding juice bars, cafés, and cocktail lounges where customers can relax and take a break from shopping. Suppliers of food service equipment can bring extra value to their retail customers by consulting on the redesign of sales floors to accommodate these nontraditional retail spaces. Retail isn’t alone in incorporating food-and-beverage offerings into the environment. Dental offices, fitness studios, and financial institutions have all taken cues from hospitality to infuse these elements into their designs and layouts, according to Retail TouchPoints.
- Food service equipment suppliers are poised to benefit from the rise in office occupancy rates fueling a rebound in foot traffic to restaurants in urban areas. New York City’s office occupancy rate increased by more than 10% in September 2022 and NYC-based Shake Shack is reaping the benefit, Nation’s Restaurants News reported in November. “We saw strong momentum coming out of Labor Day, as mobility and back-to-office trends broadly improved. It’s clear that our hometown in New York and other urban centers, things are improving with more people moving about,” said Shake Shack CEO Randy Garutti. Individual city data from Placer.ai shows that some urban markets are exceeding the nationwide average, with foot traffic to offices in NYC, Denver, and Washington, DC tracking with, or exceeding the nationwide average since January 2022.
- Only 8% of restaurant operators said they expect economic conditions to improve in six months, a September 2022 tracking survey conducted by the National Restaurant Association found. That was the lowest reading in the 20-year history of the monthly survey. In contrast, only 43% of operators surveyed said they think economic conditions will worsen during the next six months. The 35-percentage point gap between the two readings represented the largest net negative differential since the financial crisis in 2008, according to the National Restaurant Association. The Association interpreted the September survey results as a likely indication that the nation is currently in the midst of one of the most telegraphed economic slowdowns in history.
- In a move likely to accelerate the automation of the fast food industry, California lawmakers in September 2022 passed a law that could raise pay for fast food workers to as much as $22 an hour. The bill drew strong objections from the fast food industry, which argues that it will increase costs for employers and prices for consumers. The bill creates a 10-member Fast Food Council with equal numbers of workers' delegates and employers' representatives, along with two state officials, empowered to set minimum standards for wages, hours and working conditions in California. The bill caps minimum wage increases for fast food workers at chains with over 100 restaurants at $22 an hour next year, compared to the statewide minimum of $15.50 an hour. Restaurant operators are likely to turn to automated ordering systems and other labor saving equipment to control labor costs.
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