brand of the same name which is owned by acco brands . rexel type public traded as euronext rxl industry distribution of electrical supplies founded 1967 under the name cdme compagnie de distribution de mat riel electrique headquarters paris france area served worldwide key people patrick berard ceo fran ois henrot chairman of the board of directors revenue 13.5 billion 2015 net income 85 million 2015 number of employees 28 000 2015 website www.rexel.com rexel is a french group founded in 1967 which specializes in the distribution of electrical supplies to professional users . it distributes products and services in the areas of automation technical supply and energy management . the company offers a wide range of products and services including products in the lighting security automation climate control communication building automation and renewable energies sectors . the group has 2 100 sales outlets branches in 35 countries and 28 000 employees . the company positions itself as a leader in its market . 1 contents 1 history 1.1 1967 90 creation cdme from french to international 1.2 1990 2005 the construction of the rexel group 1.3 2005 11 worldwide development 1.4 2012 new company plan energy in motion 1.5 2014 new governance 2 activities 2.1 lines of business 2.1.1 design and distribution of electrical solutions 2.2 clients 2.3 strategy 2.4 brands 3 corporate governance 3.1 board of directors 3.2 executive committee 3.3 previous presidents 4 key figures 4.1 financial data 1 4.2 stock market information 4.3 extra financial information 5 social and environmental responsibility 6 references 7 external links history edit 1967 90 creation cdme from french to international edit the rexel group originated from the compagnie de distribution de mat riel electrique cdme created in 1967 by compagnie lebon . cdme was created by the merger of four companies revimex facen sotel and lienard soval . specialised in the sale of electrical supplies the company developed in france by acquiring family run regional companies . in 1978 cdme launched a branch for the distribution of professional electronic and computing equipment and diversified into the industrial supplies trade . from the 1980s cdme developed in european and international markets establishing a presence in cyprus saudi arabia portugal benelux the federal republic of germany singapore and canada . in 1983 cdme entered the unlisted securities market of the paris stock exchange . it was at that time that it became the leading distributor of electrical supplies in france with more than 20 percent of the domestic market and a 6 percent share worldwide . in 1986 the company established a presence in the united states . at that time it had around 350 sales outlets including 65 abroad . in 1987 the compagnie fran aise de l afrique occidentale cfao became cdme s largest shareholder 68 percent . 1990 2005 the construction of the rexel group edit pinault group acquired a majority stake in cdme in december 1990 ; cdme was then the biggest distributor of electrical supplies 30 percent market share in france belgium and portugal ; this new subsidiary represented 38 percent of the pinault group revenue . in june 1993 cdme merged with groupelec distribution third on the french market . the group adopted the rexel name . in the 1990s the group refocused its business on the distribution of electrical supplies selling most of its professional electrical distribution business in 1988 and in 1994 its subsidiary gdfi the leading french distributor of industrial supplies . gradually the group s subsidiaries undertook the brand name willcox & gibbs in the united states became rexel inc. in 1995 rexel italia was created in 2000 from the merger of 10 italian subsidiaries and the first joint venture was created in china under the rexel hailongxing name . in 2001 rexel generated 75 percent of its revenues abroad . at the time the group had acquired a preeminent role in its sector with 1 900 sales outlets and 25 000 employees in 33 countries and it was actively pursuing its acquisitions policy . 2005 11 worldwide development edit the ppr group pinault printemps redoute announced the sale of rexel 2 which became definitive on march 16 2005 when a capital stake was acquired by a consortium made up of clayton dubilier & rice eurazeo and merril lynch global private equity . 3 rexel delisted from paris stock exchange on april 25 2005 . in 2006 in addition to the 29 small and medium acquisitions made during this period in 2006 the group bought general electric s american distribution subsidiary ge supply which it renamed gexpro 4 becoming the sector s largest company in north america and asia pacific . gexpro reinforced the group s service business among industrial key accounts . in 2007 rexel launched a joint takeover bid with the sonepar group for the hagemeyer group which was the global number three at the time . in march 2008 it acquired a majority stake in hagemeyer s european assets elektroskandia in the nordics abm in spain and newey & eyre in the united kingdom . 5 following this acquisition the group doubled its revenues in europe increased its sales outlets in the region by 50 percent and established a presence in five new countries finland norway and the baltic countries . in 2007 rexel changed its structure and became a limited liability company with a management board and a supervisory board soci t anonyme directoire et conseil de surveillance . the company was floated on euronext paris on april 4 2007 . 6 in 2008 the group s share of the global market for distributed professional electrical supplies stood at approximately 9 percent ; it had 2 500 sales outlets across 34 countries in 2011 the company undertook new acquisitions in emerging markets . it acquired lucky well zhineng in china 7 nortel suprimentos industriais in brazil 8 and yantra automation in india . 8 2012 new company plan energy in motion edit in early 2012 the group acquired the companies delamano and etil 9 becoming a leader in the brazilian market . 10 it also expanded its presence in the u.s. with the strategic acquisition of platt electric supply . 11 year 2012 also marks the appointment of rudy provoost as chairman of the management board and ceo succeeding jean charles pauze . 12 in may the company unveiled its 2015 ambitions and presented its energy in motion company plan . 13 2014 new governance edit in may 2014 rexel moves to a new one tier governance structure with board of directors . 14 activities edit rexel provides the entire range of equipment necessary for installing and using electricity mainly in residential commercial and industrial buildings . the group also supports projects for major industrial infrastructures mines oil rigs etc. over the last few years rexel has developed low energy solutions lighting and high performance motors as well as products using renewable energies solar and wind power geothermal and aerothermal energy heat pumps solar water heaters and climate control solutions . lines of business edit design and distribution of electrical solutions edit rexel designs advises and markets electrical solutions based on major manufacturers offerings 50 percent of its revenues come from 25 main manufacturers . the company carries out its distribution business through generalist and specialist outlets as well as e commerce systems . rexel relies on 127 logistical centers worldwide for its sales outlets and clients . 15 clients edit in 2014 58 % of its clients were electrical installation engineers from individual contractors to companies 22 % manufacturers component manufacturers and panel builders 9 % retailers and housing transport infrastructures and 11 % local authorities public bodies resellers and diy superstores . strategy edit the group s strategy is based on four strategic priorities 16 profitable growth accelerate profitable growth both organically and through acquisitions active resources management optimize asset utilization and allocation of resources for increasing returns culture of cooperation leverage capabilities and synergies across the group and stimulate value added partnerships with key suppliers and customers excellence in operations enhance productivity and service levels to drive commercial effectiveness and supply chain performance . brands edit the rexel group has a sales network of around 40 brands the largest of which are rexel platt electric supply 17 gexpro westburne nedco hagemeyer and elektroskandia . rexel the group s main brand is present in the various countries australia belgium china france italy luxembourg the netherlands new zealand portugal canada and the united states among others . the hagemeyer brand is present in two countries germany and the netherlands . originally norwegian the elektroskandia brand is present in northern and eastern europe norway and russia . the group also has around 40 generalist and specialist brands in north america europe and asia pacific . corporate governance edit since 2014 the rexel group has operated as a limited liability company with a board of directors soci t anonyme conseil d administration . board of directors edit the board of directors relies on the opinions proposals and recommendations of three specialized committees whose members and attributions are set by the board the audit and risks committee the nomination and compensation committee the strategic investment committee . 18 it comprises 9 members including 100 % independent members and 4 women . 19 fran ois henrot chairman of the board chairman of the nomination committee pier luigi sigismondi chairman of the strategic investment committee fritz fr hlich chairman of the audit and risks committee thomas farrell isabel marey semper ian meakins monika ribar maria richter hendrika verhagen independent members executive committee edit the executive team manages the group s business activities . it is composed of patrick berard catherine guillouard sharon macbeath pascale giet fran ois thuilleur thierry delarue brian mcnally mitch williams previous presidents edit rudy provoost 2012 2016 jean charles pauze 2002 2012 alain redheuil 1996 2002 serge weinberg 1990 96 bernard clerc 1973 90 key figures edit financial data 1 edit rexel group s revenues at december 31 2015 were 13 5 billion euros . geographically europe had a 54 percent share north america 36 percent asia pacific 10 percent . by sector the service sector represented 44 percent residential sector 22 percent and industrial sector 34percent . in 2015 the group s operating income was 85 million euros . 20 stock market information edit rexel was listed on the paris stock exchange for the first time in 1983 isin code fr0010451203 . the group was then acquired in 1990 by the pinault group . on december 13 2004 the ppr group signed off on the sale of its subsidiary rexel to the investment consortium ray investment composed mainly of clayton dubilier & rice eurazeo and merrill lynch global private equity as known as baml capital partners since 2009 . 21 the rexel group withdrew from the paris stock exchange in 2005 and re entered it in 2007 . 22 on february 12 2015 the company s shareholding was broken down as follows 23 public 98 percent rexel employees 1.4 percent treasury shares 0.6 percent rexel is included in several share indexes sbf 120 cac mid 100 cac all trade cac allshares ftse euromid stoxx600 . rexel is also part of the following sri indices djsi europe ftse4good europe and global euro stoxx sustainability euronext vigeo europe 120 and esi excellence europe . rexel is also included on the ethibel excellence investment register in recognition of its performance in corporate social responsibility csr 24 extra financial information edit the rexel group has 40 brands in a network of 2 100 branches in 35 countries . the company has 28 000 employees including 22.6 % women . in 2014 thirty rexel group subsidiaries had set up systematic recycling . social and environmental responsibility edit rexel has joined the united nations global compact through which companies commit to respecting and promoting the ten key principles of the global compact regarding human rights labor standards the environment and anti corruption .