Spearheaded by founder and current chairperson Alan Ronald Burke, ARB Electrical Wholesalers is one of Southern Africa’s largest black-empowered electrical wholesalers, playing a pivotal role in providing the essential materials required for the electrification of large-scale industrial and parastatal projects.
ARB began in Richards Bay in 1980 and has since grown significantly and become a nationwide, fully equipped electrical whole- saler, which listed on the JSE in 2007. This milestone was deemed necessary to accelerate ongoing organic growth and to enable ARB to further expand both nationally and across the continent, and to continue its penetration of new high-growth markets.
The company, which is in the process of becoming International Organisation for Standardisation-accredited, stocks a range of internationally recognised and South African Bureau of Standards-approved products, including power and instrumentation cables, overhead line equipment and conductors and general electrical contracting equipment.
Moreover, with its latest acquisition of Elektro Vroomen in January 2013, ARB recently established a physical presence in each of South Africa’s nine provinces. The acquisition and recent transformation of Elektro Vroomen to ARB Electrical Wholesalers enables the company to service local and cross-border customers through its 18 branches countrywide.
ARB Holdings owns 74% of ARB Electrical Wholesalers and Batsomi Power owns 26%.
With a yearly turnover approaching R2-billion and a staff complement of 692, ARB leases 16 properties totalling 86 000m² which are owned by its holding company, ARB Holdings.