D&H Distributing

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D&H Distributing is a privately held North American technology distributor to the information technology (IT) and consumer electronics supply channels, founded in 1918 in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Currently headquartered in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the company distributes IT products, including server, storage and networking solutions, consumer electronics, videogaming, home networking, housewares, and sports and recreation products with a focus on resellers selling to small business (SMB) technology customers. [1] These products are distributed via six locations throughout the U.S. and Canada. The company's customer base consists of managed service providers, value-added computer resellers, integrators, retailers, etailers and consumer electronics dealers. The majority of D&H's SMB (small to mid-size business) and mid-market reseller customer base sells to regional offices in vertical markets, such as healthcare, education, state and local government, real estate, advertising, and finance. [2]

Contents

D&H Distributing was a $5.9 billion organization in November of 2024 and is listed at #106 on the 2024 Forbes list of America's largest private companies, [3] making it one of the largest private employers in the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania region. [4] The distributor has ranked as high as #84 on the Forbes list of America's Largest Private Companies [5]

The company ships out of six separate locations including its U.S. headquarters in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, a Canadian headquarters in Mississauga, Ontario, an Atlanta distribution center, and additional locations in Chicago and Fresno, California. [6] In 2017, D&H added a warehouse location in Vancouver, Canada. [7] D&H Canada moved into a new distribution center and company headquarters in 2023 in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. [8]

History

D&H Distributing was founded as Economy Tire and Rubber, a tire retreading company, established by brothers-in-law David Schwab and Harry Spector. In 1921, the company began selling wholesale parts for automobile service industry, adding crystal radios by 1926 and moving into a distribution capacity by signing with radio manufacturer Philco. Consumer appliances such as refrigerators, washers, vacuum cleaners, and ranges were added to the company’s offerings. The company was renamed D&H Distributing on November 8, 1929. [6]

By the 1950s, D&H grew along with the boom in both post-World War II kitchen appliance sales and the advent of the television set. [9]

In 1973, D&H established its Electronics Specialty Products Division. By the late 1970s, the company entered the video gaming market with the addition of Atari. As the 1980s approached, D&H licensed products from Texas Instruments, Packard Bell, Commodore Computers and Panasonic Printers, and expanded its consumer electronics linecard to form the distributor’s current Computer Products Division. In the late 1980s, it expanded nationally through the addition of warehouses in Chicago, Boston, and Dallas.

The company added large-scale IT networking manufacturers, such as Microsoft, Cisco, and Lenovo between 2000 and 2006.

In 2007, the company expanded outside the U.S. with a Canadian headquarters in Mississauga, Ontario. [10] In 2018, D&H announced its intent to purchase 275 acres of property in Lower Swatara Township, Pennsylvania to build a new distribution hub. [11] In 2019, D&H relocated its headquarters to a 50-acre, two building campus with more than 240,000 square feet of office space. [12] In 2022, D&H opened a new 745,000-foot distribution center in its hometown of Harrisburg to accommodate growth. [13]


Products and services

D&H’s product offerings include information technology solutions, including remote work infrastructures, pro-AV, esports, servers, storage and networking solutions: mobility, consumer electronics, home entertainment, home networking and automation, small office/home office, video surveillance, digital imaging and videogaming products. Major vendor partners include companies such as Microsoft, Cisco, HP, Lenovo, Intel, Samsung, Sony, Toshiba, Dell and others. D&H launched an updated Cloud Marketplace platform in 2019, creating a hosted “everything-as-a-service” offering for value added resellers and managed service providers. [14] In 2020, D&H added set of outsourced professional services for its North American SMB reseller partners including integration services, endpoint managed services, and a variety of project-specific services. [15] In 2024, D&H launched its "Go Big AI" readiness program to help demystify AI-based solutions for its partners. [16]

Leadership

Michael Schwab and Dan Schwab are co-presidents at D&H Distributing, which was founded in 1918 by their grandfather. [17] They were named co-presidents of D&H Distributing in 2008. [18] Since D&H Co-Presidents Michael Schwab and Dan Schwab took over day-to-day operations, the distributor has grown from a $1.45 billion company into a nearly $6 billion company. During that time frame, the value of the company’s Employee Stock Ownership Plan has grown more than 300 percent. [19] The company had 1,600+ employees as of November 2024. [20]


References

  1. ↑ staff (2012-10-09). "Company Overview – D&H Distributing". Bloomberg BusinessWeek. Retrieved 2012-10-09. The company sells its products through various supply channels, including value added resellers, solution[ buzzword ] providers, system integrators/system builders, resellers, college bookstores, retailers, eTailers, consumer electronics dealers, home installers, video gaming dealers, and rent-to-own dealers/stores.
  2. ↑ Scott Campbell (2007-12-11). "Schwabblehead Marks CEO Izzy Schwab's 50 Years With D&H". CRN. Archived from the original on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2012-10-09. The company was co-founded by Izzy's father David Schwab in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, in 1918 as Economy Tire and Rubber, and evolved over time into a leading RCA and Whirlpool distributorship.
  3. ↑ Andrea Murphy (2024-11-25). "America's Largest Private Companies (2024)". Forbes. Retrieved 2025-02-26. #106 D&H Distributing/REVENUE $5.9B
  4. ↑ staff (2014). "PA Department of Labor". PA Department of Labor Newsletter Quarter 2 2014.
  5. ↑ Staff/Grant Morgan (2022-02-24). "D&H Distributing Continues Investing In Growth Categories And Resources". TWICE. Retrieved 2025-02-26. Distributor is now #84 on the Forbes list of the Largest Private Companies
  6. 1 2 Mark Cox (2008-01-24). "D&H at 90: From crystal radios to Cisco routers". eChannelLine. Retrieved 2012-10-09. Not satisfied to remain in one sector of the industry, David Schwab turned the business towards a fresh market in 1926 when it began selling the first Crystal Radios, marking its entry into a nascent electronics industry. The company went on to focus on major appliances, and during this era became the largest U.S. distributor of RCA and Whirlpool merchandise. D&H eventually moved into computer products, leveraging trends that led to more profitable sales avenues and diversification. As the company grew in these new arenas, D&H developed into a diversified, multi-divisional organization.[ permanent dead link ]
  7. ↑ Mark Cox (2018-05-30). "D&H Canada continues as Ellis Island of distributors, topping 20 per cent growth again". ChannelBuzz. Retrieved 2021-01-06. Tobin emphasized that D&H's expansion of their warehouse operations into Vancouver last year has positioned the distributor for stronger growth going forward
  8. ↑ Paul Barker (2023-09-23). "D&H Canada's new distribution centre officially opens for business". CDN. Retrieved 2023-02-14. The ongoing evolution of D&H Canada continued last week with the official opening of its new distribution centre (DC) in Mississauga, which marks the company's fourth home since it launched in 2007.
  9. ↑ Steven Burke (2008-01-22). "D&H's 90th Anniversary: From Retreads To Routers". CRN. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2012-10-09. David and Harry sold off Economy Tire & Rubber as part of an aggressive expansion into consumer electronics. They saw the advent of television as a big opportunity and tires and auto parts as a sideline.
  10. ↑ Robert Dutt (July 9, 2007). "D&H opens shop in Canada". eChannelLine Canada. Retrieved October 9, 2012. Veteran American value-added distributor D&H Distributing has decided to join the fray of the distribution market in Canada, opening its first international subsidiary in distributor-heavy Mississauga, Ontario, just west of Toronto.[ permanent dead link ]
  11. ↑ "Distribution company to buy 275 acres of Jednota property, build facility". Press & Journal. Retrieved 2019-03-17.
  12. ↑ Daniel Urie (October 16, 2019). "Central Pa.'s largest private company has a new 50-acre campus to call home with a slide in the lobby: Take a look inside". PennLive. Archived from the original on October 17, 2019. Retrieved January 6, 2021. The company, which distributes numerous electronic items including network security, cloud applications, workstations, premium notebooks, videoconferencing products and more, has moved to a two-building, 50-acre campus with more than 240,000 square feet of office space.
  13. ↑ Staff (March 14, 2022). "D&H DISTRIBUTING OPENS NEW 745K SQ-FT HARRISBURG DISTRIBUTION CENTER TO ACCOMMODATE GROWTH". ChannelPro. Retrieved February 27, 2025. Major channel technology provider D&H Distributing announces that, due to its ongoing growth, it has opened a new, 745,000 square-foot distribution center (DC) in central Pennsylvania to replace its former Harrisburg-area warehouse.
  14. ↑ O'Ryan Johnson (2018-06-11). "D&H Relaunches Cloud Marketplace With European IT Distributor". CRN. D&H Distributing said it is answering the call of its partners by launching a new cloud platform that allows them to build comprehensive cloud solutions[ buzzword ] for their customers, add-on hardware and their own services, and consolidate the billing through a single portal. It is part of the distributor's mantra of offering "everything-as-a-service" and giving MSP and VAR partners
  15. ↑ Rich Freeman (2020-12-11). "D&H Betting Big on Outsourced Professional Services". ChannelPro Network. D&H is building an expansive set of outsourced professional services for its North American SMB resellers. The new offerings, which include integration services, endpoint managed services, and a variety of project-specific services
  16. ↑ CJ Fairfield (2024-02-09). "D&H's 'Go Big AI' Program Makes AI 'Tangible' For MSPs". CRN. We're really trying to demystify the whole opportunity around AI to make it tangible
  17. ↑ Nancy Klosek (2014-12-15). "Hall of Fame: Michael and Dan Schwab : Staying True to Their Roots". Dealerscope. p. 1. For Michael and Dan Schwab, Co -presidents of D&H Distributing, the list of accomplishments they have achieved at the helm of this multi-generational family business, started in 1918 by their grandfather
  18. ↑ Jessica Davis (May 7, 2018). "D&H to Complete Long Planned Management Succession". Channel Insider. D&H is elevating vice presidents Dan Schwab and Michael Schwab to the roles of co-presidents at the company their grandfather founded in the early part of the last century
  19. ↑ Steve Burke (May 7, 2018). "CRN Interview: D&H's Dan And Michael Schwab On Driving Billion-Dollar Growth And Employees Being Their 'Number-One Asset'". CRN. Since D&H Co-Presidents Dan (pictured, far right) and Michael Schwab took over day-to-day operations a decade ago, the distributor has grown from a $1.45 billion company with 850 employees into a $4 billion company.
  20. ↑ staff (November 25, 2024). "Profile D&H Distributing". Forbes. Employees 1,618
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