Reid Supply Company

Reid Supply Company was a global industrial parts distributor headquartered in Muskegon, Michigan. Established in 1948 by Liberty Reid as Reid Tool Supply, the business initially served machine shops with tools and related industrial components. Its early operation was small enough to begin from Reid's home, but within roughly four years the company had moved into a purpose-built warehouse, reflecting the development of a more substantial distribution operation. Over the following decades, Reid expanded its product range and customer base. By 2005, the company had moved beyond the narrower identity implied by Reid Tool Supply and adopted the name Reid Supply Company to reflect its broader assortment of industrial tools, parts, and components. Its catalog grew from a 16-page publication mailed to more than 5,000 machine shops into a catalog exceeding 850 pages. The catalog model was central to the company's commercial identity, allowing industrial customers to source a wide range of standard parts and supplies from a single specialist distributor. The company served customers across a diverse set of industries, including medical equipment, alternative energy, oil and gas, engineering, aerospace, packaging, food processing, general manufacturing, construction, and government. Its offerings and related services were organized through a collection of Reid businesses. These included Reid Supply Company for industrial parts distribution, United SignGraphics for signage and custom and large-format printing, Reid Safety for outerwear, workwear, and safety products, Total Quality Machining for machining and customization services, and Professional Parts Warehouse for snow-plow parts and accessories. Reid also developed relationships with public-sector buyers. As a small business and GSA contract holder, it participated in federal and state contracting, giving the company a route to government customers in addition to private industrial accounts. The business was also identified as a major employer in the Muskegon region and maintained local workplace and community initiatives. It was among the area's early companies to take a proactive position on banning smoking in the workplace, and the Reid entities used employee rewards to encourage participation in blood drives. Filtrona plc announced in August 2014 that it had acquired Reid Supply Company for $32 million. The available reference material also states that the business was rebranded Essentra as of December 31, 2013, creating a chronology in which the reported rebranding predates the reported acquisition announcement. The exact legal and operational sequence is therefore not fully clear from the available sources. In brand terms, Reid Supply Company subsequently ceased to operate under its former identity and is best treated as a historical industrial-distribution brand associated with the Essentra group.

Reid Supply Company's history began in 1948, when Liberty Reid established Reid Tool Supply in Muskegon, Michigan. The company initially focused on supplying tools and related products to machine shops. Its early scale was modest: operations reportedly began at Reid's home. Within approximately four years, however, the business had outgrown that arrangement and moved into a newly constructed warehouse, an early indication of its transition from a small local operation into a structured industrial distributor. The company's principal growth model was based on product breadth and catalog distribution. Its first catalog consisted of 16 pages and was mailed to more than 5,000 machine shops. Over time, the catalog expanded substantially, eventually exceeding 850 pages. This growth reflected the company's widening assortment and its effort to serve customers that needed many different industrial parts and supplies through one source rather than through numerous specialized vendors. By 2005, Reid Tool Supply was offering a much broader range of industrial tools and parts. The company changed its name to Reid Supply Company to better represent that enlarged business scope. The new name also supported the development of a wider collection of related Reid businesses. Reid Supply remained the industrial-parts distribution arm, while United SignGraphics handled signage and custom and large-format printing; Reid Safety supplied outerwear, workwear, and safety products; Total Quality Machining provided machining services and customization of Reid-stock products; and Professional Parts Warehouse focused on snow-plow parts and accessories. Together these businesses were described as the Reid companies or Reid Entities. Reid Supply served a wide range of end markets. Its customer base and applications extended across medical products, alternative energy, oil and gas, engineering, aerospace, packaging, food processing, manufacturing, construction, and government. The breadth of these markets reduced the company's dependence on one industrial vertical and positioned it as a general-purpose source for components and associated services. The company also held GSA contracting status as a small business and received federal and state contracts, connecting its distribution capabilities with public-sector procurement. The business had a notable presence in the Muskegon area and was described as one of the region's major employers. Its local identity included workplace and community initiatives. Reid was among the first companies in the area to take a proactive approach to prohibiting smoking at work, and the Reid Entities maintained an employee-reward policy intended to encourage participation in blood drives. The later corporate history is reported with an unresolved chronology in the available material. One account states that Reid Supply Company was rebranded Essentra on December 31, 2013, in line with a global rebranding. Separately, it was announced in August 2014 that Filtrona plc had purchased Reid Supply Company for $32 million. These dates may represent different stages of a broader corporate integration or may reflect a reporting inconsistency; the available reference does not establish the exact legal sequence. What is clear is that the Reid Supply name was absorbed into the Essentra identity and no longer functioned as the principal public-facing brand.

• 2014

  Filtrona reports acquisition

  [1]Reid Supply Companyen.wikipedia.org

  Filtrona plc announces in August that it has purchased Reid Supply Company for $32 million.

• 2013

  Reid brand is rebranded as Essentra

  [1]Reid Supply Companyen.wikipedia.org

  Reference material dates the transition from Reid Supply Company to Essentra to December 31, 2013.

• 2005

  Name changes to Reid Supply Company

  [1]Reid Supply Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The business adopts Reid Supply Company as its name after expanding beyond its original tool-supply focus into a wider range of industrial parts and products.

• 1952

  Operations move into a warehouse

  [1]Reid Supply Companyen.wikipedia.org

  After beginning from Liberty Reid's home, the company moves into a newly constructed warehouse approximately four years after its founding.

• 1948

  Reid Tool Supply is founded

  [1]Reid Supply Companyen.wikipedia.org

  Liberty Reid establishes Reid Tool Supply in Muskegon, Michigan, beginning the business that later becomes Reid Supply Company.

A broad, catalog-led industrial supplier combining standard parts distribution with related safety, machining, signage, and specialty-product businesses.

• Industrial distribution

  Industrial tools and parts catalog

  Reid's central commercial offering was a broad catalog of industrial tools, standard parts, and related components. The catalog grew from a 16-page publication distributed to more than 5,000 machine shops to a publication exceeding 850 pages, illustrating the company's development into a general industrial sourcing partner.

• Safety and workwear

  Reid Safety

  A Reid Entity focused on outerwear, workwear, and safety products for industrial and workplace users. It complemented the company's parts-distribution business by addressing employee apparel and occupational-safety needs.

• Machining services

  Total Quality Machining

  A related machining operation providing customization and machining services for Reid-stock products. It extended the group beyond catalog distribution into value-added modification and custom industrial work.

• Specialty vehicle parts

  Professional Parts Warehouse

  A Reid Entity specializing in snow-plow parts and accessories, serving a more focused specialty-equipment segment alongside the broader industrial catalog business.

• Signage and printing

  United SignGraphics

  A related Reid business providing signage, custom printing, and large-format printing services. Its activities broadened the collection of Reid companies beyond industrial components into visual communications.

• 2014

  Sale to FiltronaM&A

  Background

  Filtrona plc pursued the acquisition of the Muskegon-based industrial parts distributor.

  Action taken

  Filtrona announced the purchase of Reid Supply Company for $32 million in August 2014.

  Aftermath

  The acquisition associated the business with Filtrona and the subsequent Essentra identity. The reported rebranding date precedes the acquisition announcement, so the precise chronology requires further verification.

  Acquisition price. 32000000 USD (August 2014 announcement)

  Source

• 2013

  Transition to the Essentra brandStrategy

  Background

  The business was brought into a global rebranding effort associated with Essentra.

  Action taken

  Reference material states that Reid Supply Company was rebranded Essentra effective December 31, 2013.

  Aftermath

  The Reid Supply name ceased to be the principal operating brand, although the available material does not fully explain the legal and operational sequence surrounding the change.

  Source

• 2005

  Adopt a broader industrial-supply identityStrategy

  Background

  The original Reid Tool Supply name no longer fully represented the company's expanded assortment of tools, parts, and industrial products.

  Action taken

  The company changed its name to Reid Supply Company to signal a broader product and distribution scope.

  Aftermath

  The renamed business continued operating as a diversified industrial supplier and part of a wider collection of Reid entities.

  Source

• 2014

  Filtrona announces acquisition of Reid Supply Company[1]Reid Supply Companyen.wikipedia.org

  M&A

  Filtrona plc announced in August 2014 that it had purchased Reid Supply Company for $32 million. The transaction brought the Muskegon-based industrial parts distributor into Filtrona's portfolio.

• 2013

  Reid Supply Company rebranded as Essentra[1]Reid Supply Companyen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Reference material states that Reid Supply Company was rebranded Essentra effective December 31, 2013, marking the end of the Reid Supply identity in favor of the group's global brand.

1. 1Reid Supply Companyen.wikipedia.org