Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1003718
B U S I N E S S P RO F I L E S 76 B U S I N E S S P R O F I L E S S P E C I A L A D V E R T I S I N G S E C T I O N Y ou might be surprised by Horizon Solutions. An electrical and industrial wholesale distributor launched in the 21 st century — whose first name is synonymous with the future, and which operates branches across New England and New York — is also cel- ebrating its 100th year in Maine. e company is the result of a merger by three family busi- nesses: Holmes Electric Supply, of Portland; Oakes Electric, of Holyoke, Massachusetts; and RERO Distribution, of Rochester, New York. e three united as Horizon Solutions in 2000, but Holmes dates to 1918. (Oakes began in 1885, and the RERO busi- ness was founded in 1857.) Today, Horizon Solutions provides not only electrical con- tractor supplies, but also products and services for industrial automation, metalworking and other manufacturing functions, as well as services and technology to improve energy efficiency and enhance workplace safety. e company serves a wide variety of industries, from construction to chemicals, and job sites ranging from highly automated manufacturing facilities to elementary schools to Ivy League campuses. ese offerings seem far from the fuses, ballasts and wire sold by the company's predecessors. But maybe not so far. "e landscape has shifted, and we've reinvented ourselves. But we're still a local company, in each one of our branches," says Horizon Solutions Vice President Don Harrington. "On any given day, it still comes down to, 'How do we solve the challenges a customer is facing today?'" Keeping it local In addition to branches in its three original markets, Horizon Solutions now operates an 80,000-square-foot Central Distribution Center (CDC) in Albany, New York, as well as locations in Bangor; Manchester, New Hampshire; Elmira, New York; and Taunton, Massachusetts. Over 40 employees are based in Horizon Solutions' Scarbor- ough and Bangor locations, and Harrington says they "define the Maine work ethic" as the Holmes family did. at steadfast ethic means getting to know customers as neighbors, and doing what it takes to solve a problem, not merely sell a product. And the ethic extends to the needs of the community, according to Harrington. He should know. A 32-year veteran of Horizon Solutions and its predecessor, he recalls that his initial task with Holmes Electric was an unusual one, assigned on his first day by Bert Andrews, a fourth-generation family member who was then company president. "Don," he said, "I want you to go to a Junior Achievement meeting." Horizon Solutions P H O T O C O U R T E S Y O F H O R I Z O N S O L U T I O N S P H O T O C O U R T E S Y O F H O R I Z O N S O L U T I O N S This distributor serves customers and communities in time-honored tradition Horizon Solutions team members in Portland (above) and Bangor (below) provide a wide variety of electrical and industrial products for Maine businesses, as the company has been doing for a century.