| Sysco Corporation | |
| Type: | Public |
| Hq Location City: | Houston, Texas |
| Hq Location Country: | U.S. |
| Key People: | Kevin Hourican (CEO) Ed Shirley, Executive Chairman |
| Num Employees: | 72,000 (2023) |
| Industry: | Wholesale |
Sysco Corporation (short for Systems and Services Company) is an American multinational corporation involved in marketing and distributing food products, smallwares, kitchen equipment and tabletop items to restaurants, healthcare and educational facilities, hospitality businesses like hotels and inns, and wholesale to other companies that provide foodservice (like Aramark and Sodexo). The company is headquartered in the Energy Corridor district of Houston, Texas.[1] Sysco is the world's largest broadline food distributor; it has more than 600,000 clients in a wide array of fields. Management consulting is also an integral part of their services. The company operates approximately 330 distribution facilities worldwide; providing service to over 90 countries.
The company was founded in 1969 by Herbert Irving, John F. Baugh, and Harry Rosenthal.[2] The company became public on March 3, 1970. On July 20, 2009, Fortune magazine ranked Sysco No. 204 in the annual Fortune 500 companies in world based on sales volume. On May 3, 2010, Fortune ranked Sysco as the seventh largest Fortune 500 Company in Texas and 55th largest in the U.S. by total revenue.[3] Sysco is also the largest non-oil related company in Houston and the third largest non-oil related company in Texas (behind AT&T and Dell).[3] The company ranked No. 54 in the 2018 Fortune 500 list of the largest US corporations by total revenue.[4]
In December 2013, Sysco announced an $8.2 billion planned acquisition of its next-largest food distribution rival, US Foods.[5] The Federal Trade Commission challenged the acquisition as a violation of the Clayton Antitrust Act that would substantially lessen competition. After the court ruled that the combined company would likely reduce competition because it would control 75% of the U.S. food service industry, Sysco terminated its merger with US Foods.[6]
In 1966, Zero Foods owner John Baugh initiated discussions with the leaders of eight other food distribution companies about the prospect of forming one large corporation.[7] The nine companies agreed to terms and formed Sysco in May of 1969. At the time of the merger, the total sales of the nine companies were approximately $115 million.[8] In March 1970, Sysco held its initial public offering.[9]
Sysco made its first acquisition in 1970, purchasing Arrow Foods Distributor.[10] Between 1970 and 1980, the company continued to grow through the acquisition of 25 small food distributors.[11] It also expanded its trucking fleet and constructed refrigerated warehouses for food storage.
In 1980, Sysco recorded $1.2 billion in annual revenue. The following year, it moved its stock from the American Stock Exchange to the New York Stock Exchange. In 1985, Sysco was described in a New York Times report as "the nation's leading food service marketing and distribution company."[12]
In 1988, Sysco achieved nationwide coverage through its acquisition of the food distributor CFS Continental.[13] By 1996, Sysco was the third-largest company in Houston and had over 30,000 employees.[14] Sysco acquired Newport Meat in 1999, which at the time had sales of approximately $100 million per year. This was the company's first acquisition of a California company.[15] Between 1995 and 2000, Sysco's annual sales increased from $12 billion to $19 billion. In 2002, Sysco expanded into the Canadian market by purchasing SERCA Foodservices for $278 million. SERCA's business was similar to Sysco's, with the Canadian company supplying food products and foodservice supplies to approximately 80,000 customers at the time of the acquisition.[16] The following year, Sysco acquired Asian Foods, which was then the largest Asian food distribution company in North America.[17] In 2009, Sysco made its first acquisition outside of North America, buying the Irish food distributor Pallas Foods.[18] Further expanding its footprint in Ireland, Sysco purchased the food distributor Crossgar Foodservice for an undisclosed amount in 2012.[19] [20]
On December 9, 2013, Sysco announced they were planning to acquire US Foods, their closest competitor, for a total of $3.5 billion.[21] However, on June 24, 2015, US Federal Judge Amit Mehta ruled that the combined Sysco-US Foods would control 75% of the U.S. food service industry and would stifle competition.[22] As a result, on June 29, 2015, Sysco terminated its merger with US Foods.[23]
In February 2016, Sysco announced that it was purchasing the Brakes Group for $3.1 billion. At the time, Brakes was serving about 50,000 restaurants, hotels, and schools across Europe.[24] In May 2021, Sysco acquired Greco and Sons, a distributor of Italian specialty food products.[25] Later that year, Sysco purchased the fresh produce distributor The Coastal Companies for the purpose of supplementing both its fleet and its specialty produce business.[26] In October 2023, Sysco announced that it was purchasing Edward Don & Company, a food service supplies and equipment distributor.[27] This acquisition gave the company additional office and distribution space, as well as the ability to design and build kitchens for its customers.[28]
The SYGMA Network, Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sysco that provides food and non-food products to chain restaurants throughout the United States.
SYGMA was founded in January 1984, when senior officers of Sysco Corporation started discussions for forming a new distribution company. The first products were shipped in May 1985, from SYGMA's first distribution center in Oklahoma. In 1988, Sysco acquired CFS, increasing head count at the organization.
SYGMA's customers include approximately 14,000 restaurants representing 26 concepts. Operating from 14 distribution centers, SYGMA is one of the largest chain distributors in the United States with sales over $6.7 billion. 186 million cases of product are delivered each year. SYGMA currently employs over 4,000 employees.