History

Ferguson is a company committed to the growth of its business and its people. Founded in 1953 by Charlie Ferguson, Ralph Lenz and Johnny Smithers, the company began with a modest $150,000 starting capital and two locations in Washington, D.C., and Birmingham, Ala., for the purpose of servicing smaller plumbing contractors. In 1954, Crossroads Supply opened in Alexandria, Va., and became the umbrella company for the three locations. Peebles Supply was opened in 1959 in Newport News, Va., by David Peebles, who became the company’s second president in 1969 and changed the name of the managing company to Ferguson Enterprises Inc.

Under Peebles' leadership, Ferguson grew to be an industry leader by idealizing the American dream of owning and operating a business. Ferguson managers who started locations under their own names were truly entrepreneurs, structuring their businesses based on local market demands. Peebles instituted the Management Training Program, which was designed to attract the best and brightest the workforce had to offer. Peebles' philosophy of aggressive expansion and his vision of what we could become served Ferguson well during this period of growth. By 1982, when the company was acquired by Wolseley plc, Ferguson had 76 locations in 11 states. Wolseley's financial strength contributed to Ferguson's phenomenal growth in the next decade with the addition of 13 new states, bringing the total number of locations to 200.

In 1989, Charlie Banks, Peebles' first official trainee, became president. With Banks' guidance, Ferguson grew from $600 million in sales to over $3.3 billion and more than 500 locations. In May 2001, Banks became group chief executive of Wolseley, Ferguson's parent company, and Chip Hornsby stepped in to guide Ferguson as president and chief executive officer. Hornsby’s perpetuation of the long-standing philosophy of settling for nothing less than the best — in products offered, in customer service provided and in the people who are the Ferguson team — continued as the company’s true competitive advantage. In 2005, John Stegeman was appointed Ferguson’s president and chief executive officer with Hornsby transitioning to Wolseley's Group Chief Executive after Mr. Bank's retirement the following year. Stegeman's keen eye and management skills helped Ferguson weather a challenging economic downturn while staying ahead of the competition.

Led today by President and Chief Executive Officer Frank Roach, Ferguson continues to focus on developing their associates and providing unrivaled customer service — a proven strategy that will allow Ferguson to continue to meet their goals for the future.  The company’s diversification across multiple business sectors, including residential, waterworks, HVAC/R and commercial/industrial have positioned the company to succeed, regardless of the economic climate.  Recently, Ferguson began servicing customers through Ferguson Online, a dynamic online interface that allows customers to submit orders 24 hours a day, from anywhere with an Internet connection.

Ferguson is a company that has proven it can adapt to the times.  The company’s rich history and second-to-none customer service make it an industry leader, but its associates make Ferguson the company it is today.