Atlanta, GA, June 24--Home Depot, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, plans to acquire Suwanee-based Williams Brothers Lumber Co. to try to bolster its professional contractor business.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Williams Bros., a privately held firm founded in 1922, is one of the largest professional dealers in the country with $444 million in sales last year and 1,300 employees.
The newspaper quoted Home Depot spokesman Jerry Shields as saying the company will become part of the Home Depot Supply division as part of a growth strategy to reach the $400 billion professional customer market.
The transaction is expected to close by the end of June.
Home Depot has put an emphasis on the professional contractor side of its business in the last several years. It accounts for about 30 percent of sales. The company acquired California-based White Cap Construction Co. last year, which is now part of the Home Depot Supply division. That division makes up about 4 percent of total company sales.
