Robbie Harvey signs a card at the Sioux Snap-On Power Tools Inc. display Wednesday during the the Southeast Industrial & Safety Show at First Tennessee Pavilion. The tool company plans to frame the card to honor Walter A. Wood Supply Co.’s 100 years in business.Company at a glanceName: Walter A. Wood Supply Co.Founded: April 1913 as feed and seed businessProducts: More than 500,000 industrial supplies, tools, pieces of equipmentHeadquarters: 4509 Rossville Blvd.Revenues: $20 millionStaff: 75 employeesContact: 423-867-1033, www.walterwood.com
In 1913, Henry Ford opened his first moving assembly line for the Model T, American women were seven years out from winning the right to vote and the Walter A. Wood Supply Co. was founded in Chattanooga.
One hundred years later, Walter A. Wood Supply Co. is still chugging along. It’s still family owned. And it’s still in Chattanooga. The distribution company celebrated its 100th anniversary Wednesday by hosting a trade show at First Tennessee Pavilion.
“We’ve had customers on the books for forever,” said President and CEO David Henry, whose grandfather bought the company from the Wood family in 1938. “It’s crazy.”
These days, the company operates three locations, does $20 million in annual sales and distributes more than a half-million products — mostly industrial supplies to manufacturing companies. During the last century, the company has shifted, shrunk and expanded. Trends have come and gone. But Walter A. Wood Supply Co. has remained financially solid, Henry said.