NEW ORLEANS -- John Georges, CEO of Georges Enterprises, has announced the acquisition of convenience store distributor Harrison Co., Bossier City, La. At a press conference in the Bossier City Council Chamber, Georges, a New Orleans business owner and investor, said his grocery distribution company, Imperial Trading Co. of New Orleans, had been looking throughout the Ark-La-Tex for a new partner, but chose Harrison and Bossier City over other strong sites.
Harrison is the second largest Louisiana-owned food distributor servicing c-stores, second only to Imperial. Harrison and Imperial [image-nocss] combined will serve thousands of customers in nine states.
"During my campaign for governor in 2007, I talked about economic development in Louisiana, so we decided to invest right here, and Harrison is a very good company with excellent employees and management," Georges said. Harrison had more than $215 million in sales last year.
Georges said he plans to expand employment at Harrison by another 100 jobs, to about 250, and projects revenues of Harrison and Imperial Trading to top $1 billion by the end of 2010.
Hal Martin, president of Harrison, said he is "excited about taking this step at becoming a $1 billion super-regional distributor. I am staying on as president because I believe the combination of our two companies will create a force to be reckoned with in the industry."
Georges had been looking for an inland site since Hurricane Katrina. "This acquisition will not only allow us to continue offering competitive prices, despite vastly increased fuel costs, but will also allow us to provide our customers with uninterrupted service in case any catastrophic hurricanes affect south Louisiana again," he said. "We don't expect any major changes at Harrison and are confident it will continue to grow under Hal Martin's leadership."
Wayne Baquet, president and COO of Imperial Trading, added, "This is an excellent company with great employees that will allow us to expand our business efficiently and very effectively. Harrison Co. has a great reputation in the distribution industry, and is a respected employer of Louisiana. For those reasons, we thought Harrison would be a great fit for Imperial Trading Co. and its future growth in the convenience store distribution channels."
Georges Enterprises includes Imperial, AMA Distributors, Dolphin Marine International, Refreshment Solutions and Louisiana Film Studios, as well as investments in real estate development, construction and raw materials management.Members help make our journalism possible. Become a CSP member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.