National retailer of truck and trailer parts FleetPride has acquired a Southern California supply company.
The purchase of Drake Supply Co., founded in 1948, brings the number of FleetPride locations in the state to 28. FleetPride said it has extended employment offers to all employees at Drake’s City of Industry, Commerce, Fontana, Long Beach, Ontario and Perris branches.
Drake Supply Co. was founded in San Leandro, California as the Glen C. Drake Co. In 1990 Tye Plowman purchased the Drake Co. Plowman will stay on with FleetPride in a management role.
“Tye grew Drake Supply from one to six locations – his entire heavy-duty career has been in this market. He has built an organization that is focused on customer service in a market with some very unique logistics issues,” said Lee Stockseth, president and COO.
“This is an extremely large and dense market for the heavy-duty trucking industry. Expertise and customer service are key to success here. We will succeed because our employees offer a combination of skills and work ethic unmatched anywhere else in the industry,” said W.M. McGee, chairman and CEO.