Border States

Happy New Year from all of us at Border States!

We will be closed on Monday, January 1, for New Year's Day. We will reopen for normal business hours on Tuesday, January 2.

24/7 help is available through our Emergency Help Line: 800.800.0199.

Happy holidays from all of us at Border States!

However you're celebrating, we wish you and yours a holiday filled with warmth, hope and light.

We will be closed on Monday, December 25, for the Christmas holiday. We will reopen for normal business hours on Tuesday, December 26.

24/7 help is available through our Emergency Help Line: 800.800.0199.

Employee-owners from our Branch Support Center (corporate office) in Fargo, North Dakota, are supporting the Salvation Army this holiday season!

Want to stay informed about commodity trends? The Commodity Update is a new monthly newsletter written by Border States experts for people like you.

Each month, it provides a high-level overview of events affecting the prices of four key commodities: Steel, aluminum, PVC and copper.

Subscribe today to get monthly commodity trend updates sent right to your inbox: bse-l.ink/commodity-newsletter

We're concluding this year's Meet a Vet campaign with Kelsie Knudson, Project Manager at our Kansas City, Missouri, branch, who served in the U.S. Army and continues to serve in the Kansas Army National Guard.

After college, Kelsie entered the Army as a Logistics Officer. She was stationed at Fort Stewart in Georgia and went on to be deployed to Afghanistan. While there, she was in charge of 65 soldiers tasked with closing down military locations, oftentimes dealing with dangerous conditions. Kelsie went on to serve in training exercises in Germany and a logistical unit in Europe before coming off active duty in January 2019 and transitioning to the Kansas Army National Guard. As a part of her service with the Guard, she helped with emergency COVID operations at Fort Bliss in El Paso, Texas, and continues to serve today.

"What the military has brought me to understand is that doing my job to the best of my abilities ensures others can complete their jobs to the best of their abilities," Kelsie said. "You have a purpose, and you are part of a bigger mission."

To read the rest of our veteran stories from this year's campaign, visit our page!

Another successful Rockwell Automation Fair is in the books!

We had a great time in Boston, Massachusetts, connecting with our customers, partners and other industry leaders. The four-day event was packed with excellent trainings, tours, summits, sessions and keynote speakers. We learned a lot, made great connections and explored the latest technology and solutions in industrial automation.

Thank you to everybody who stopped by our booth. We look forward to seeing you again next year!

Happy Thanksgiving from all of us here at Border States!

Meet Michael Morgan, City Desk Representative at our Nampa, Idaho, location and veteran of the U.S. Air Force.

Michael enlisted with the Air Force during his senior year of high school and knew he wanted to specialize in firefighting. He started service in March 1983, and after basic training, he completed a Fire Protection Specialist course, where he learned about putting out aircraft fires. Initially stationed at Goodfellow Air Force Base in San Angelo, Texas, Michael was deployed to Misawa AFB in Japan in 1985. During his time overseas, he also spent time in Seoul, South Korea, helping to train South Korean forces. Michael received a Commendation Medal during his time abroad.

"I had so many different experiences with people of different cultures and ethnicities," Michael said about his time in service. "You learn that you are just a human being like everyone else."

Visit our page to read more stories from Border States' veterans during this month's Meet a Vet campaign!

Border States Sponsors Down Home Move-In The Border States team partnered with Down Home (DH) to quickly transform an empty space into a beautiful and dignified home for a family emerging from homelessness in the FM community. Border States has been an incredible partner with DH and recently completed their fourth sponsored move-in. The…

All Border States locations will be closed on Thursday and Friday, November 23 and 24, in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday.

24/7 help is available at our Emergency Help Line: 800.800.0199.

Meet Michael O'Donnell, CDL Driver at our Nampa, Idaho, branch and veteran of the U.S. Navy.

Michael enlisted in the Navy in March 2002, inspired in part by his grandfather and father who also served in the military. After boot camp, Michael went to Fleet Anti-Submarine Warfare Training in San Diego, California, where he was trained as a Surface Sonar Technician. That training took him to Whidbey Island, Washington, and then into service on sonar boats stationed in the Pacific Ocean before he left the Navy in 2007.

Stay tuned on our social channels all month long to read more stories from veteran employee-owners here at Border States as a part of our Meet a Vet campaign!

With an ever-changing supply chain landscape, our industry experts are keeping an eye on factors impacting commodity pricing and availability, shifting labor markets and logistics and freight concerns.

Read our latest update below.

UPDATED 11.15.2023 – Impacts on Global Supply Chain Logistics As we continue to navigate unprecedented global supply chain challenges, Border States is committed to keeping you updated regarding supply chain impacts, inflationary pressures and other market trends. We are working diligently to provide you with the most current information possible, knowing this...

Meet Jessi Woinarowicz, Executive Assistant at our Branch Support Center (corporate office) in Fargo, North Dakota, and North Dakota Air National Guard veteran.

Jessi committed to serve in the North Dakota Air National Guard when she was just 17 years old. In her eight years of service, Jessi was deployed to the United Arab Emirates as a part of Operation Enduring Freedom, and her time in service helped her develop life-long leadership skills that have served her throughout her career.

"Along my journey, I've accumulated a wealth of leadership experiences that have instilled in me humility, patience and self-awareness of my own leadership style," Jessi said. "Those eight years remain a force in my life story, shaping the person I am today."

Stay tuned on our page throughout the month of November to read more of our Meet a Vet stories!

David White, CEO, was recently honored with Affiliated Distributors' (AD) prestigious AD Leadership Award.

Watch his full address below!

2023 AD ESD Leadership Award

James Sipe, Executive VP Supply Chain, recently had the opportunity to present at this year's Minnesota Power Systems Conference (MIPSYCON) about key concerns for the supply chain in 2023 and beyond.

On this Veterans Day, we pause to honor the bravery and sacrifice of all those who have served in the United States Armed Forces.

This Sunday, November 12, is Diwali, also known as Deepavali, the Hindu festival of lights.

Diwali celebrates the triumph of light over dark and the blessings of victory, freedom and enlightenment. Here at Border States, employee-owners who celebrate Diwali have been sharing about what this holiday means to them, including Priyanka Sonawani, Customer Service Supervisor at our Pewaukee, Wisconsin, location, who shared these photos from her family's Diwali celebration!

We're kicking off this year's Meet a Vet campaign with Robert Landgrebe, Regional Operations Specialist – West, who served in the U.S. Army.

After entering the Future Soldier Program during his final year in high school, Robert completed basic training at Fort Jackson in South Carolina and mechanical training at Fort Lee in Virginia before being stationed at Fort Riley in Kansas for four years.

In summer 2016, Robert deployed to Kuwait for nine months. While there, he worked on military vehicles and as a Combative's Instructor. Later, he went on to complete additional leadership training and was stationed in South Korea for a year before eventually leaving active duty in 2019.

"Going into the military at such an early age was character-building," Robert said. "It gave me the building blocks of the person I am today and for where I want to go from here."

Stay tuned on our social media channels all November long to read other stories from veteran employee-owners here at Border States!

November is National Native American Heritage Month, which is also commonly referred to as National American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month.

It is our privilege to acknowledge the diverse cultures, traditions and history of the Native American people and to celebrate their important contributions to our company and country.

We're checking in from our all-new branch location!

Set to open in early 2024, this new space will include a 120,000-square-foot warehouse!

We celebrated ESOPtoberfest with a lunch for our team, a fun game of ESOP trivia (Sean Hinze, Quotation Specialist, won the prize) and several rounds of Loteria Bingo!

It's always a great time to celebrate employee ownership and our ESOP, especially during National Employee Ownership Month!

October is the annual celebration in the United States recognizing Filipino Americans.

Filipino Americans are the third-largest Asian American group in the United States. The first documented arrival of Filipinos to the United States was on October 18, 1587, in Morro Bay, California.

We've been celebrating our Filipino American employee-owners by sharing their traditions companywide.

We have been celebrating National Employee Ownership Month all October long!

Border States is a 100% employee-owned company, and as a part of their ownership, our employee-owners all across the country enjoy participating in our ESOP and having a personal stake in the success of our company.

Last week, we welcomed 17 of our strategic vendor partners to our Branch Support Center (corporate office) in Fargo, North Dakota, to kick off planning for next year.

It was a great opportunity to align on upcoming strategic initiatives designed to connect our customers with our vendors' cutting-edge products, services and solutions.

Thanks to everyone who attended!

We are proud to support Municipal Electric Utilities of Wisconsin as they celebrate their 95th anniversary today!

Border States' supply chain experts are continuously monitoring a variety of factors, including geopolitical conflict, U.S. economic and labor concerns, and changes to commodity pricing, to ensure our customers have the information they need to keep their unstoppable businesses running.

Read our latest update below.

UPDATED 10.12.2023 – Impacts on Global Supply Chain Logistics As we continue to navigate unprecedented global supply chain challenges, Border States is committed to keeping you updated regarding supply chain impacts, inflationary pressures and other market trends. We are working diligently to provide you with the most current information possible, knowing this...

We are excited to be a part of Industrial Distribution's Big 50 list again this year!

Moving up one spot from last year, we continue to expand our product and services offerings to serve customers in the industrial distribution space and look forward to all the growth still to come.

The 2023 Industrial Distribution Big 50 Distributors are hungry to win — and it shows.

Border States was a proud Ambassador Sponsor for the trade show and industry event.

At our booth, we had a great time meeting with customers, strategic partners and industry leaders to discuss our growing lineup of service offerings across our expanding geographic footprint, including material management, manufacturing and assembly, wire and cable services and on-site staffing for the construction, industrial and utility markets.

Border States employee-owners also attended the "Friday Night Lights" opening ceremony at the Philadelphia Eagles' football stadium!

Our Hispanic and Latino employee-owners bring unique perspective and add richness to Border States' culture.

In celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month, we have been highlighting these perspectives through stories from across Border States and companywide events focused on sharing Hispanic culture.

This year's National Hispanic Heritage Month theme is "Latinos: Driving Prosperity, Power, and Progress in America," which recognizes the significant strides of Hispanics in the economic, political and social growth of the United States.

We will be attending the upcoming International Lineman's Rodeo from Wednesday–Saturday, October 11–14, in Overland Park, Kansas!

Stop by to speak with the Border States team and our partners from Teledyne FLIR in booth 517.

International Lineman's Rodeo & Expo | International Lineman's Rodeo Association The Lineman’s Rodeo attracts the best linemen from around the world to compete in events based on traditional lineman tasks and skills. The first Lineman’s Rodeo was held in September 1984, with twelve participating teams from Kansas and Missouri. The Rodeo has grown to over 200 teams and 300 ap...

Earlier this month, we hosted an event with Rockwell Automation, Inc., Cisco and a representative from the FBI to discuss cybersecurity concerns faced by our customers in the water industry.

Thank you to all our attendees and to our presenters for providing their unique insight into how to navigate this set of evolving industry challenges.

Congratulations to our second Women's Leadership Program cohort for recently completing the program!

The Women's Leadership Program commits to empower, elevate and expose participants to impactful learning. It's been a wonderful year with our second cohort, and we look forward to seeing all the ways they will continue to lead throughout our organization!

We had a blast at our second Border States Industrial Technology Summit (BITS) last week in Phoenix, Arizona.

Attendees had the opportunity to listen and learn from industry leaders during several presentations and demos focused on everything from industrial hand tools to cybersecurity and more.

Thank you to everyone who attended and to all our event sponsors for helping make BITS a success!