City Electric Supply (CES) has just opened the doors in Marathon, located in the building formerly occupied by Windswept Appliances.
“Contractors and even homeowners in the Florida Keys are excited to have CES Marathon nearby. They don’t have to drive an hour south or an hour north to get electrical supplies. They can just walk right in,” said CES Marathon branch manager Jaime Naranjo.
The new 7,000-square-foot store is prepared to serve as the one-stop-shop for the entire community.
“Business is just walking through the door,” Naranjo said. “It says a lot about the service we provide; we can help anyone. It doesn’t matter if they’re a contractor or just a homeowner needing to grab a few things, we’re here to supply the entire community.”
Naranjo and his branch are looking forward to making things easier for contractors not just in Marathon, but in all of the Florida Keys.
“It’s tough for the people who live and work here,” he admitted. “If a contractor has to leave a job to pick up a part, they’ll be driving all day. It could cost them an hour or two easily. CES Marathon has an opportunity to supply a large portion of the Florida Keys.”
And the customers have already stopped by the new branch to get their hands on some products, from one-off items, like tape, screws and extension cords, to carrying all the stainless-steel products. The team members at CES Marathon are happy to help customers in any way they can.
“Whether it’s tools or lights or anything else, people can come to us and we can help them out,” he said. “We have the experience to educate our customers and help them figure out exactly what they need. That’s going to be important, especially during hurricane season.”
“We’re not just here to sell supplies,” he added. “We’re here to help people repair their homes, finish their projects. We’re as much a part of this community as they are.”
It’s all about community, according to Naranjo. He and his team couldn’t be happier to be invested in communities throughout the Florida Keys.
“We’re truly blessed to have this opportunity,” he said. “We expect to have a big impact on the electrical community throughout the Keys. In three to four months, I could easily see us on track to becoming one of the top branches in City Electric Supply.”
And with a bunch of developments currently in the works, such as new hospitals, schools, libraries homes, and more, the opportunities are endless for the new CES store.
Through one of the most popular activities in town, fishing, the branch could even expand into the marine market in the near future.
“I’d never dealt with the marine side in Miami, but people always have their boats on the water here,” he said. “It’s a year-round business, so we’re expanding into that market as well.”
As for what Naranjo is looking forward to the most, it’s building relationships with each customer who comes through their doors.
“We have a chance to help every community here, from Marathon to Key West to Key Largo. That’s probably what I’m looking forward to the most,” Naranjo said, who operated a CES branch in Miami for four years. “Just interacting daily with people who live here, not just contractors.”
CES is a family-owned electrical wholesale distributor headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The company was founded in 1951 by Tom Mackie in the United Kingdom and expanded to the United States in 1983. Today, CES employs more than 3,000 people in over 500 branches across the U.S. It also has a branch in Key West.
